


A Druid in Skyrim

by Hopedruid



Category: Elder Scrolls, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: A non-Dovahkiin Protagonist, Action/Adventure, DnD elements, Druids, Eventual Harem, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Intrigue, M/M, Politics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2020-05-20 05:52:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 51,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19370791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hopedruid/pseuds/Hopedruid
Summary: A DnD player finds himself in the body of his character and in the world of Skyrim. With new powers and a new background, can he survive and thrive in this new world?





	1. Chapter 1

He awoke in a tent. He could hear the faint sounds of insects chirping and buzzing, leaves rustling and other assorted sounds of nature.

But that wasn't right. Last night he had been in his house. Playing games and staying up too late watching anime. He shouldn't be in a tent. He shouldn't be outside. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and realized that wasn't the only thing that was different. His body.

He had always been thin, but this was a more athletic leanness. Like he had spent a long time hiking. His skin was pale as usual, but it was a more attractive pale. Almost like some idealized form of beauty. And his frame was almost feminine. So much so, he had to check his crotch. Yep, still there. Although it seemed as small as always. Though he'd have to check if he was a grower later. Right now he had other worries.

Like what the fuck was happening to him.

He got dressed in the simple cloth clothing he had in his tent, and exited it. Apparently, he had a whole camp set up. With a fireplace, cooking pot, and a trunk nearby. He also found a bow and arrows which he slung over his shoulders, and a dagger. This place was strange...but it looked somehow familiar. Examing the trunk, revealed more arrows, some food, and a healing potion.

"A healing...potion? What on earth..." He said. Then he shook his head.

"No. Not on earth. I've clearly arrived someplace else. I'm in some kind of fantasy world." He said. Then he looked up and noticed in the distance, a city that had been burned to the ground.

Everything was beginning to click. That city was Helgin. This was...the game he played last night.

Skyrim. He was in Skyrim.

This was an Isekei. Some trapped in another world story. He'd read and watched and played many of them before. But never in all his life did he think it would happen to him. He was scared. Damn near petrified. And he had longed for this day hadn't he? But now...the possibilities were staggering. The first thing he needed to do was head someplace safe. Riverwood was closest. He had a map and some gold. He could spend the night in an inn if he was able to get there by evening. But then he would need to worry about getting more money...and that would probably mean danger.

This was during the civil war and the dragon revival. Everywhere would involve danger. Damn it. Damn it. Damn it.

He took a breath. He should look at the map. That might tell him more. He opened it up and it revealed all the common landmarks of Skyrim. The holds and major cities and towns. Howver it also revealed a place called "Druid's den" to the west.

That was...intriguing. He had created a druid character during the DND session he had yesterday. A Half-Elf Druid. He was intrigued by the notion of getting to live out life as such a figure. Was he a druid here? This person whose body he had inhabited? Or could he train to be such?

The thought enthralled him. He'd have to make for that place as soon as possible. The young man headed out, walking to where he knew Riverwood to be. As he did so, he noticed that he was moving differently then he was used to. And this was not all to do with adjustments to his body.

He was rolling his hips as he walked, swaying them femininely, sashying if you will. This baffled the young man particularly as to how, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move any other way. Now he never had a problem with effeminate men or homosexuals, in fact he was somewhat attracted to men himself, and usually one might expect someone to be placed in such a body to punish bigotry.

However He had no such bigotry, so perhaps it was just a coincidence. In any case, it was something else to get used to. And possibly a problem if anyone here had such bigotries.

He eventually stumbled upon some standing , Thief, Mage. But they looked quite different. There were runes on them instead.

The young man approached and touched one and in a flash his senses were overwhelmed as the world shifted.

He was looking at a character page. Seeing stats. His stats he realized. His top three were Wisdom, Intelligence and Charisma, his bottom stats were Dexterity, Endurance and Strength. His absolute bottom stat was strength while his top stat was Wisdom. His class was listed as druid. His race as Half Elf/Breton. His starting equipment though was missing a few things and had some things he hadn't seen either. Finally, his name was Yew Fey and he was level 1.

Despite feeling like he was in some sort of pop up menu, the young man was aware of his body, and holding the stone. He took his hand off and took a breath. That was the character sheet he concocted the other day, before he went into his DnD session yesterday. Though he didn't put the Breton bit. He supposed that was to convert things to Skyrim Lore.

Then the young man realized something with a start. Ever since he had seen his name on the character page, he had been thinking of himself as Yew Fey. In fact, he couldn't even remember his old name from his old life. Jonathan? Nathan? He just couldn't remember and all of the names he could recall didn't fit. Yew seemed to, despite him very well knowing it wasn't the name he had.

No sense in panicking, he thought, Yew will do for now. Still, he should have a list of cantrips and his character's backstory, but he didn't see any of that. So he decided to pick another pillar and see if there was any difference. He walked over to another at random and laid a hand on it.

Again a character sheet menu came into view. And yes, the cantrip list was there, exactly as he had chosen it. He had gone for an offensive build, which he was now kinda regretting. Sure his survival knowledge was pretty good, because of his druid class, but he very much was concerned about supplies when out in the field. He was already getting a bit hungry and thirsty, so he knew this wasn't an Isekei world that functioned exactly like in game. He was going to need to eat and drink. Still, he had a fairly good selection and the Druidcraft cantrip so he thought things could have been a lot worse.

His backstory was also as he remembered writing it. Well, mostly. In this world, he had apparently been born to petty nobility in High Rock. He was trained in many of the courtly arts, before finding a druidic mentor and studying under her. However, this information was detached from him. Yew had no memories of this happening.

Again Yew took his hand from the stone and went to the third. Apparently, he had been born under the sign of the Mage and had a number of skills accumulated in his life. Again he removed his hand and decided to take a lunch break. He plopped down on the grass and began eating a loaf of bread, a wedge of cheese and an apple. He could taste, which was good. He'd seen plenty of Isekei's where that wasn't a thing. So it seemed like he was in a different reality, rather than having entered the "reality" of the game.

He got up and continued following the river to Riverwood. It was around thirty minutes after lunch when he heard noises. The crack of twigs. The sound of something breathing. Almost instinctually, he grabbed his bow and nocked an arrow. He'd never done such in his life but it felt near second nature to him. He surveyed the area and found a couple of staving, mangy looking wolves. He felt a bit of sympathy. These poor animals were fighting for their lives and quite clearly losing.

But the way they were snarling meant this could only be resolved one way.

He sent an arrow flying into the head of one, killing it in a single blow. Yew immediately backstepped as he nocked another arrow, but all the wolves were coming at him. He sent another flying in a panic and caught one on the front leg, knocking it to the ground. One wolf knocked him to the ground with a tackle and began biting deep into his shoulder. Pain shot through Yew's body as blood gushed from his wound.

Yew was able to maneuver his hand to his dagger and plunged it to into the wolfs neck. It let out a gurgle and collapsed. But another one was on Yew even as he pushed himself to his knees. This one caught him in the neck and Yew struggled and stabbed the creature's belly again and again before it let go. Yew grabbed his neck trying to staunch the flow of blood. Panic. His vision was growing red. What to do? What to do?

Health Potion. Health potion of course. He fumbled in his pack, finally pulling out the bottle and quaffed it. It tasted terrible. Worse then he would have thought but he got it down, and felt the wound in his neck stop bleeding, and then a pleasant tingle as it stitched itself up. The wound in his shoulder, however, was still there. Hurting like a bitch.

"By the Eight! Are you alright?" Said a female voice. She was wearing brown robes that actually seemed tailored to her body.

"Yeah...I-I'm ok. Could use treatment for my shoulder but..." Yew practically flinched at the sound of his own voice. It was completely different to his old voice.

"Wow...your kind of..." She trailed off and she looked like she was near blushing.

"Sorry. I shouldn't be- look I can help you. See?" She said, putting her hands above his wound. He felt a very similar tingling to when he drank the potion and his shoulder healed completely.

He still felt kinda weak though.

"Thanks. I appreciate that." Yew said. Then he gave her a closer look. She really was pretty. He felt a familiar stirring. At least some things hadn't changed.

She looked like a nord and she had a cherubs face. She was curvy, and Kale had the desire to see what those robes were hiding.

"What's your name gorgoues?" Yew said. His flirtatious behavior came to him instinctively, despite never being much of a flirt in his old life.

"Gr-Greta. I'm a healing mage. Because of the war...my services are more in need than ever." Greta said.

"I see. Greta huh? That's a pretty name. Fitting too." Yew said.

"Thanks. What's your name?" Greta said.

"Yew. Yew Fey." Yew said. She paled.

"H-Huh. I-I see. Y-Yew Fey. It's good to meet you." She said and gave a stiff bow.

"What's with the formality. I should be bowing to you, after all you did sorta rescue me." Yew said, looking at the corpse of the wolf at her feet. Seems like she bashed' the creatures head in, with her mace.

"Ha Ha. Yeah I suppose I did." She laughed sheepishly, and suddenly she didn't look quite as scared.

Yew got up on slightly unsteady feet.

"Oh! Are you ok? It can take some time to regain your energy." Greta said.

"Ha. I'm fine. See?" Yew said, regaining his balance.

"I do. Still, I should make sure you make it to Riverwood. Come follow me." Greta said, turning around.

"It would be my pleasure." Yew said, following after her. The view was quite nice.

Riverwood was much the same as in the game, though with all the glory of having the graphics of reality. However, he did notice a strange tower in the middle of town and a couple of additional houses. Still, Yew didn't ask many questions, instead just following Greta into the inn.

"Welcome travelers, to the Sleeping Giant inn. Name's Orgnar. Come in, take a load off, get some food and drink and rest for the evening." Orgnar said.

"Your sales pitch is pretty aggressive. But I appreciate the hospitality." Yew said. He found a nearby table and sat down, Greta following close behind.

"I want seared salmon, a sweet roll and some mead." Yew said, after Orgnar came to take their orders.

"I..well, I'll have the same." Greta said. Orgnar nodded and went to prepare the meal.

"So what's your story." Yew said to Greta.

"Huh?" She said.

"I know you're a healing mage, wandering from place to place because of the war right? But I'd like to know a bit more about you." Yew said.

"Well...I trained at Winterhold college for a couple of years. I also spent some time worshipping Kynreath in Whiterun. But once the war broke out I couldn't stay on the sidelines as people died. I wanted to help as many people survive as possible, until this awful war ends." Greta said.

"I see." Yew said with a nod. "That's quite admirable."

"What about you? What's your backstory." Greta said.

"I originally hail from High Rock. Born to a petty noble family, I pursued training under a druidess. I've come to Skyrim to continue my training and observe the events happening here." Yew said.

"I see...High Rock huh." Greta said, her face fell and again she looked a bit...afraid.

"Is that so surprising?" Yew asked.

"N-no. Of course not it's just..." Greta said. Then she shook her head.

"I-it's nothing." Greta said. Yew gave her a look. She wasn't telling him something. But then he shrugged. She didn't seem the sort to try and betray or manipulate him.

"Ok then." Yew said with a nod. They ate their supper and listened to the bard play. He was pretty good. It would be nice to have a bard accompany him places. Though from what he knew of Sven, he was a bit of a bastard. There was a Bard's college in Skyrim wasn't there? Perhaps he could recruit a student there.

"Well...it's been a lovely evening. But I should probably retire to my room for the night." Greta said.

"Ok then. I'll join you in a few minutes." Yew said. He wanted to take another look at his map, and maybe look through his pack. He had grabbed it but hadn't even gone through it.

"J-join me? I-In my room?" Greta said, she was blushing pretty heavily.

"Yeah. Why not?" Yew said.

"B-because! W-We barely know one another." Greta said.

"You saved my life. That's all I need to know." Yew said.

"B-but..." Greta said.

"This is a dangerous world Greta. One should embrace pleasure when they can." Yew said leaning over closer to Greta. She was clearly flustered.

"I-I'm sorry...I can't!" Greta said. Yew sat back in his chair.

"That's perfectly fine Greta." Yew said. Greta blinked.

"It is?" Greta said.

"Of course it is." Yew said. Greta's eyes narrowed. He wasn't throwing a tantrum or even acting hurt or rejected. He seemed completely confident and composed.

"I just...wasn't expecting-" Greta said.

"Myself to act decently? I can take no as an answer Greta darling. I won't force you. Or flirt if that's not what you want." Yew said.

"R-Really?" Greta was impressed.

"That would be against my code. And against basic decency." Yew said. They sat in silence for a few moments then Greta wished him a good night and headed to her room.

Delphine approached Yew as he looked over his map yet again.

"I overheard your conversation." Delphine said.

"Oh?" Yew said.

"Yes. You won't get high praise for me for being the bare minuim of decent." Delphine said.

"I wasn't expecting any." Yew said.

"...But I can give you praise for being kind to her. Greta's been through a lot, and men, even men who once had been decent, turn into monsters during war." Delphine said.

"I see." Yew said.

"So I won't slap you over the head for hitting on her, or for leering at her backside. That's the reward you get for making her smile." Delphine said. Willow grinned a bit.

"Thank you kindly." Yew said, and Delphine went off and Yew looked again at his map.

He noticed a few strange things. 1: The map labeled several locations other than cities and towns as important. The College of Winterhold. The Temple of Kyraenth in Whiterun. The Temple of Dibella. The barracks at Solitude. And one unnamed location to the northeast that looked to be in the middle of wilderness.

2: When he placed a finger at certain locations, he got vague feelings. A sense of dread at Windhelm. A sense of anticipation for Solitude. A sense of regret at Markarth. A sense of anxiety at Riften. They faded fast but they were definitely there.

3\. Turning it over and examining it in the candlelight revealed bizarre runes. Runes that he understood at once. They said the following: Resolve the Civil War. Find the Dovakiin. Don't Forget.

He had...apparently set out on some sort of journey to end the civil war and to find the Dovakiin. Which meant he wasn't the Dovakiin. Yew wasn't quite sure what to think about that. At the one hand that meant he wouldn't have to save the world by himself. Carry that burden. On the other hand that meant the fate of this new world rested on someone, he didn't even know.

Yew bought a room and headed inside. There he decided to open his pack. Within was a Druidic grimoire, a journal, some rations, a few herbs and soul gems.

Yew checked out the Grimoire first. He felt a rush of energy as his fingers touched it. He opened it and looked at a variety of spells recorded in it. However half of it was blank. To Yew it felt like...spells were missing. Still looking at this text taught him how to prepare and use spells. Yew felt...ready. Ready for this strange, dangerous world.

Then he grabbed his journal and read it. The first entry explained how he was leaving High Rock for Skyrim, because of the desperate need to end the Civil War. The next entries described his journey to the Druid's Den, where an old hermit druid lived. Yew had apparently spent some time with him, but eventually, he died. Yew then headed out to try and find the Dovahkiin, because he believed dragons were returning. He set up a camp nearby, and then the dragon attacked.

It felt surreal to be reading something he wrote, the man whose body he inhabited wrote, but that he could not recall. More importantly, he had plunged into a fantasy epic. A story about magic and war and survival and politics and heroes and villains.

And he was fucking terrified.

But there was also something else, a joy and excitement beyond that of which he had ever experienced. Finally, he felt like he was apart of something special. Finally, he could embark on a grand adventure. Finally, he could try and prove his skills and intelligence.

Finally, he could make a world a better place. It wasn't his world, but it was something.


	2. Chapter 2

It took a while for Yew to get to sleep. It wasn't his bed and it wasn't his world. His dreams were full of blood, and magic, and naked bodies spending a lovely night together in pleasure. He woke up and his bed was sticky and he was aroused as hell. It had been a few years since he had his last wet dream. He wondered who those faces and bodies, half-remembered from his dream, belonged to. If those people were real at all. Had those been Yews memories? And if they had, why didn't he have access to them in his waking hours?

 

He got dressed and headed out of his room. Greta already had a table, and was dining on a light breakfast.

 

"Hello Greta." Yew said.

 

"Good morning Sir Yew." Greta said.

 

"That's a bit formal. I'm not a sir, Greta." Yew said.

 

"I see. I just...was making sure." Greta said, blushing and looking at her feet.

 

"So, where do you intend on going?" Yew asked as he sat down across from her.

 

"I-I'm not sure. I intended on staying here for a couple of days more. Make sure the people are safe and healthy. But... I go where the fighting is." Greta said.

 

"And where is the fighting exactly?" Yew asked.

 

"Everywhere." She said with a sad, ironic smile.

 

"Well then. We are spoiled with choices." Yew said, his smile was just a tad bit optimistic.

 

"Ha. But...we?" Greta said.

 

"We may as well travel together. After all, I did come here to resolve this war." Yew said.

 

"Resolve the war?" Greta said.

 

"Yes. End it. In a satisfactory manner." Yew said.

 

"And what manner is that?" Greta said, with a bit of a frown.

 

"That...is to be determined." Yew said.

 

"Well then...I suppose I can accompany you. The both of us will probably be safer together. Though I suspect your a much better fighter then me." Greta said.

 

"Well, I get by." Yew said. She smiled at that.

 

Yew ordered breakfast and the two spent some time talking. Apparently, Greta's family had been merchants in Whiterun. But they died of sickness early on, and Greta set out to make her living as a healer and a priestess.

 

"Did you enjoy your time at Winterhold?" Yew said.

 

"A bit. Though...it wasn't all good. And the Jarl...he's an awful man." Greta said. Yew nodded.

 

"Good to know." Yew said. The two headed out. Keen to get some supplies, and maybe patrol the nearby area. 

 

The Riverwood Trader was the first stop. As Yew anticipated, the owners were in an argument.

 

"...Camilla, your not going out on your own." The man behind the counter said. Lucian, Yew believed his name was.

 

"Why not? They stole the claw from us, and we're just going to do nothing?" Camilla asked.

 

"It's far too dangerous." Lucian grumbled.

 

"I can handle myself, Lucian. This dagger on my hip isn't just for show." Camilla said, fingering the hilt of the dagger at her side. She was quite beautiful, with shapely hips and a curvaceous backside. She also had quite the attractive face. 

 

"Your good with your blade. For a merchant woman. But you're not some expert. And you'll likely be cut down by that thief. Especially if he's apart of a bandit gang. Can't very well take half a dozen men like your some experienced adventurer." Lucian said. 

 

"I'll be careful." Camilla said.

 

"Camilla, it's not happening." Lucian said.

 

"What else can we do? If people know they can just steal from us unpunished then we'll be targets for all the bandits and broken men in Skyrim!" Camilla said.

 

"Hello. What seems to be the problem?" Yew said, taking a few steps forward from the doorway and revealing his presence. 

 

Camilla smirked, her eyes full of attraction. Lucian looked unimpressed.

 

"It's nothing that concerns you." Lucian grumbled.

 

"Don't be rude brother. This handsome traveler might be able to help us." Camilla said. 

 

"Huh. He does have a bow on his back. You good with that thing stranger?" Lucian asked. 

 

"I get by." Yew said. 

 

"He's being a bit modest. He's really good. He was able to take out a couple of wolves just outside of town." Greta said.

 

"Sounds like a true hunter." Camilla said.

 

"Those scrawny things. Camilla could probably take 3 on her own, no problem." Lucian said.

 

"He's not just skilled with a bow though. He also is skilled with magic." Greta said. Yew shot her a look.

 

"Magic huh?" Lucian said, thoughtfully

 

"See. And this woman with him. Greta right? Your a healer aren't you?" Camilla said.

 

"Y-yes. I am." Greta said. 

 

"She has some skill with the mace as well." Yew said. 

 

"Hm. I guess we can take the chance. We'll pay you a fair amount if you head to Bleak Falls Barrow and get our claw back." Lucian said.

 

"I could use some gold for supplies...I will accept your offer." Yew said. He felt nervous excitement shoot through his body. He was finally getting his chance. He could test out his magic soon.

 

 

"Thanks. You're my hero." Camilla said, giving Yew a kiss on the cheek, and brushing her small breasts against his chest. 

 

"And you're my hero too." Camilla said. Winking at Greta, who blushed.

 

"Don't mind her. She flirts with everybody. Not like she always means it." Lucian said.

 

"Keep your nose out of it brother." Camilla said.

 

"This...Bleak Falls Barrow...were is it exactly?" Yew asked.

 

"I can show you." Camilla said.

 

"Don't take them too close, just show it to them and mark it on their maps." Lucian said.

 

"Fine. Fine." Camilla said, sounding a bit irritated. 

 

"Don't worry, we'll bring your sister back safely." Yew said. Lucian shook his head and grumbled. The trio then left the trader.

 

"We have to go through town and across the bridge to get to Bleak Falls Barrow. You can see it from here though. The mountain just over the buildings." Camilla said. Yew looked at it. It really was amazing how different things looked in the universe. How much more beautiful and real everything was.

 

"Beautiful place to put some eerie old tombs." Yew said 

 

"Still I can't blame anyone for wanting to bury their dead up to their. It seems fitting." Yew said. 

 

"Indeed. Still, the thieves must be made to hide out up there. Those old crypts must be filled with traps, trolls and gods know what else." Camilla said. 

 

"The claw...do you know why they might have stolen it?" Greta asked.

 

"No idea. We have many things that are worth at least as many coins. It's strange they didn't steal anything else." Camilla said. 

 

"Perhaps it's value is greater then it appears." Yew said. 

 

"Maybe. It is strange. Lucan found the claw about a year after he opened the store. He never quite explained where he got it." Camilla said.

 

"That's a clue there is something more to it then it seems, I'd say." Yew said. 

 

"Your the adventurers and mages, so your probably right. To me, it looked purely ornamental, but I really couldn't say." Camilla said. 

 

"Here's the bridge out of town. The path up the mountain to the northwest leads to Bleak Falls Barrow." Camilla said, when the trio had made it to the bridge.

 

"I see. I think we'll be able to find our way from here." Yew said.

 

"I'm sure you will. The two of you look mighty resourceful." Camilla said, looking from Yew to Greta with a seductive glance.

 

"Exactly. I'd like to show you how resourceful I can be." Yew said. 

 

"U-Uh, we probably should get going. B-before it gets dark." Greta said, blushing. Yew understood, she was a bit uncomfortable with this whole situation. He didn't blame her, he was the shy sort too, back on Earth. 

 

"Yeah, I should get back to my brother. He'll throw a fit if I take too long, such a child." Camilla said.

 

"I imagine he's a hassle to deal with." Yew said.

 

"Yeah, he can be. Want me to mark your map?" Camilla said. Yew nodded and handed her the map. To his surprise, she made no note of the seemingly magical nature of it.

 

"There you go. Once you spot the old watchtower, you won't be able to miss it. This is farewell for now brave adventurers. Just make sure to be safe. I don't want it to be our final parting." Camilla said.

 

"I wouldn't want that either." Yew said. Camilla sauntered off and Yew watched her walk off over his shoulder. Camilla was swaying her hips in seductively.

 

"I see...so your into that sort of woman." Greta said.

 

"I'm into a lot of different kinds of women. And what did you mean by that sort?" Yew said, his tone light.

 

"N-nothing. I-I didn't mean to imply...J-just forget I said anything." Greta said. 

 

"Alright brave cleric. Let's head out shall we?" Yew said.

 

"Yes, let's. We can't let those two down." Greta said.


	3. Chapter 3

The pair began their trek towards Bleak Falls Barrow. It wasn't long before a wolf lunged out, eager to defend it's domain. To Yew's eyes, it was much different than the other wolves they fought. It didn't look sickly or too thin. Rather it was clearly just trying to survive in a hostile world. Greta's weapon was drawn.

 

"Hold." Yew said, and Greta held. With a gesture and a muttered word the wolf was calmed and it retreated back to its den.

 

"That spell...so that is the power of a Druid huh?" Greta said. Yew bowed.

 

"Why of course. It was a simple matter for one such as I." Yew said.

 

"That's useful. So you'll be able to take care of all such wild animals like that?" Greta asked. Yew shook his head.

 

"Alas no. Some animals are too far gone to hunger or disease to head such a spell. However, it will do us well in most cases combat could be avoided." Yew said. 

 

"I see." Greta said, and withdrew her mace. The two continued onward. 

 

"I-I've noticed..." Greta said before trailing off.

 

"What have you noticed?" Yew asked.

 

"W-well. It's nothing really. I shouldn't have brought it up." Greta said.

 

"But you have. So please, speak my dear cleric." Yew said.

 

"W-well, and I hope this doesn't come off as rude but...the way you swing your hips as you walk..." Greta said.

 

"Yes?" Yew said, prompting her to continue.

 

"Well...it's very much like how most ladies walk. Could you tell me why it is you...walk like that?" Greta asked.

 

"It comes naturally to me." Yew said.

 

"R-really?" Greta said.

 

"Yes." Yew said.

 

"Ah. I didn't know...I see it all makes sense. Has anyone ever....been hostile to you about it. Teasing, being cruel?" Greta asked.

 

"Yes." Yew said. He didn't know why he said it, it was like another voice within him had said it for him. But it felt right, like the truth.

 

"I'm terribly sorry. That's awful." Greta said.

 

"It makes no matter. I don't concern myself with those types of people." Yew said.

 

"Good. I have no problem with the way you walk. I think it quite suits you." Greta said.

 

"Thanks. I like it too. It draws attention to my magnificent derriere." Yew said with a wink. Greta chuckled.

 

"It-it does do that." Greta said. 

 

"So you have been looking." Yew said, with a grin.

 

"N-Not like that! I-I mean your bottom is extraordinary but I-I-I didn't mean I was staring! Just hard not to take notice!" Greta said.

 

"Oh, so it's so fine you can't help yourself?" Yew said.

 

"I-I-I..." Greta was so flustered she couldn't speak. Yew chuckled.

 

"Sorry. I couldn't resist teasing you a bit. I understand. It's fine. You can look at my rear anytime." Yew said.

 

"...Thank you." Greta said awkwardly. 

 

It wasn't too much longer before the duo saw a tower in the distance. 

 

"I don't have a good feeling about that tower." Greta said.

 

"Why's that?" Yew asked.

 

"Banditry has been really picking up lately, and this would be the perfect place to camp out." Greta said.

 

"That makes a lot of sense. Your knowledge of this area and current events has already proven useful." Yew said. Greta nodded.

 

"Thank you." Greta said.

 

"Let's tread carefully, then. Hopefully, we can avoid a fight or at the least, get a drop on them." Yew said. Greta agreed.

 

 

They began to walk lighter and tried their best not to make any unnecessary noise. Ducking behind stones when they could and trying to spot a potential ambush. They would look ridiculous if no one was here, Yew thought, but it was better then being strewn with arrows for prancing about in the open. 

 

Finally, they saw what looked to be a guard. He was wearing hide armor and had a great sword strapped on his back. Yew reckoned he could kill him quick enough. Get him in the neck a couple of times, maybe some of the weaker points in the armor, which was clearly poorly maintained. Yeah, this guy was all about intimidation. He'd go down easy enough the hulking brute, and Yew wouldn't have to waste any of his spells.

 

Problem was he didn't know if he was actually a bandit or not. 

 

Likely he was. What Greta said made perfect sense after all. If he was a bandit this is where he would make a base. In fact, this tower didn't look to bad to have as a base for his purposes. Especially if he needed a place to sleep after clearing out the Barrow. There was however an outside chance this man was innocent. Possibly he was an adventurer who had beat them to the punch. Or someone who just happened to be checking out the area. A non-hostile treasure hunter, looking for loot at the Barrow. Even someone sent by one of the town guards. Yew just couldn't be sure. 

 

So he had to find out. 

 

"Hail friend." Yew said, standing up. The man barely flinched.

 

"No closer. If you leave now, you'll leave with your life." The man said, hand on his blade.

 

"We're friends. I'm a traveler just looking to find a group of bandits hidden in this area, who stole a golden claw." Yew said. 

 

"I don't know nothing about no golden claw." The man said.

 

"What's your purpose here friend." Yew said.

 

"Your making a mistake. You'll die screaming unless you leave right now." The man said. Yew drew his bow and notched an arrow.

 

"That was a threat. Tell me, how many others have you threatened, and how many others have you fulfilled your threats on?" Yew said.

 

"Plenty. From young whelps and screaming maids to countless men like you. Die you son of a bitch!" The man said, withdrawing his blade.

 

Yew began sending arrows flying. Several hitting him in his armor. However the man kept screaming as he charged, and eventually made it over to the rock where he began swinging his great sword. Yew backed up and sent another arrow flying, drawing blood from the man, but he just wouldn't go down. Finally Yew sent an arrow into his throat, and the man fell at last. 

 

However arrows were now flying from the tower and Greta was now in a struggle with a female bandit wearing a horned helm, with a shield and mace. Greta seemed to be doing a fairly good job, avoiding swings and wearing down the bandit. Yew ducked under the cover of the rock and sent a couple of arrows flying one went past the bandit's shoulder and the other went into her leg. After this the bandit lowered her guard allowing Greta to rain blows down upon the bandits head, crushing her skull, helm or no helm. 

 

Greta then ducked behind another boulder. That was good. He needed to deal with that fucking archer who had been taking potshots. The archer in question was on the bottom level of the tower, near the entrance. He took aim, shot and connected with her leg. Then He ducked as she began responding. Then he took aim, shot and connected with her stomach. Prompting another response and some more time under the cover of the rock. Finally, he got her in the neck and she slumped over. 

 

Clearly, she wasn't bright as she had continued to rain down arrows all that time. Going over to her, Yew discovered that her quiver was nearly empty. Why behave in such a suicidal attack? Was she green and inexperienced at combat? or was there some other motivation?

 

Yew also felt like he was getting more powerful with each kill he accumulated. It was a strange feeling, but not a bad one. 

 

"Do you think it's clear?" Greta said.

 

"We'll have to ascend the tower to see." Yew said, putting his bow away. In the tower, he would have to rely on his magic because it was too close quarters for bows. Greta nodded and followed Yew up the first floor of the tower. 

 

As soon as Yew ascended he received a blow to his face. His head hit the back of the tower, knocking him dizzy and blood spurted from his nose. For a few moments, his brain was static as he tried to recover from the hit. He heard the sound of metal against metal, and slowly he realized that meant Greta was clashing with whoever had hit him. He opened his eyes and let his vision focus. Greta, smart, beautiful, Greta had maneuvered the foe so that his back was to Yew. Yew began to concentrate, reaching for his magic.

 

"Piercing Thorn." Yew said and a large thorn appeared from where Yew's hand was pointing and found it's way, rather quickly, into the bandits back. 

 

He fell gurgling to the ground. 

 

"Th-thanks. You saved me there." Greta said, she had gotten several large cuts.

 

"I should be thanking you. You were the one who saved me. That fiend really got the drop on me, if it wasn't for you, he'd have finished me." Yew said.

 

"I guess we make a good team." Greta said.

 

Then she tended to both of their wounds. 

 

Yew felt revitalized. 

 

"Thank you Greta, you excel at the healing arts. I don't know what I would do without you." Yew said. Truth be told, he had some potion recipes he could brew up, but flattering one's companions was often wise. And besides that Greta's company and skills were greatly appreciated, as well as her other...assets.

 

"I do what I can." Greta said. 

 

"Good, well then, it seems for the moment we have cleared out this tower of bandits. We should probably help ourselves to any loot and supplies they have." Yew said. Greta nodded and the two divided up the labor of checking for anything that might come in handy, on the corpses of the bandits, in any of the barrels or chests and on tables. 

 

Yew helped himself to a couple of fresh apples that the bandits had gathered and Greta had a bit of cheese. Yew also found several health potions he added to his stores. Greta took a couple of their weapons to sell back at town and Yew helped himself to the few arrows he could retrieve from the bandit archer. Both of them took any gold they could find.

 

"Well, that seems to be all." Greta said.

 

"Ok then. It's onto Bleak Falls Barrow then." Yew said. He believed he had enough spells he could sling to get through what was to come. Especially with the help of Greta and with his skill at archery.


	4. Chapter 4

They continued along their way and found that the barrow was an impressive structure. As much a castle as it was a crypt, with fairly elaborate stairs leading to the main hall.

It wasn't that long into the approach that Greta and Yew were under attack. A Nord man with a huge battleax came screaming at them, charging Greta immediately. Meanwhile, Yew suddenly had to dodge arrows and contend with a lithe woman armed with a dagger.

"Hail, Breton bitch, die quickly." The woman said swinging her dagger and managing to cut Yew's cheek.

"Fuck...you." Yew said, gathering up his energy and hitting her with a piercing thorn. She stumbled and was bleeding quite heavily but she didn't stop, managing to cut Yew in the side and slash him across the chest.

Yew summoned up another spell and a ball of acid went directly into the bandit woman's face. She let out a terrifying cry and sunk to the ground, dying in agony.

Yew, however, had gotten two arrows, one in his leg and one in his shoulder. Yew felt horrible, the world was growing fainter and he was unsteady on his feet. Quick as he could he grabbed a potion, pried the top off and drank it quickly. He felt the familiar sensation of his wounds healing a bit, and he looked up at the archer in question who had done the deed.

Yew sent a piercing thorn into the Argonian man's neck and he fell to the ground with a gurgle and a death rattle, an arrow half way to his bow.

While this all had been happening, Greta had been dodging the Nord bandits powerful attacks, getting in blows to his body with her mace when she could. Still, despite being poorly armored, the Nord warrior was shrugging off her strikes. This was most likely because Greta was unable to get the opportunity to deliver a full force attack. She needed to get him vulnerable.

She couldn't dodge forever though and a huge rake of the bandit's terrible axe went across her body. She fell to the ground with a cry and the bandit spat at her unmoving body. Then he turned around just in time to see Yew deal the death blow to his Argonian companion. The man began to walk over. The spellcaster was easy pickings, he thought, already severely wounded and distracted. It would be an easy matter to kill him and then leave this place for brighter pastures. Maybe he could sell his axe in Riften. The Blackbriars always needed a blade, he heard.

Then he felt the mace come down on his head. And again. He didn't feel it the third time or the fourth. And his head was unrecognizable by the fifth. Greta stopped to catch her breath at that point. That fight and the blood loss had taken a lot out of her.

She'd managed to cast barkskin before the fool even noticed and that was enough to keep her protected. She still lost a good amount of blood, but she could heal those wounds. She just needed to catch her breath first. Yew stumbled to her, a bloody mess.

"G-Greta, you did it." Yew said, clearly weak.

"Y-yes. I did. But your wounds are bad. They need healing." Greta said, her voice a bit breathless.

"Y-yeah. I'd appreciate that." Yew said, then he fall to his knees and Greta rushed over to him, preparing a spell to start the healing process.

"Greta?" Yew said as she began healing his wounds.

"What?" Greta asked.

"You do know your clothes have been shredded right?" Yew said. Greta looked down to realize that the brute she had just fought had basically cut away much of her clothing to the point she was essentially standing around in underwear. Greta began blushing and also took note of the chill of this Skyrim mountain.

After Greta healed Yew, she let him rest for a bit. The poor druid had passed out do to blood loss. Greta was thankful she had an extra change of clothing in her pack and changed into it. Then she proceeded to pray to Kyrneth and rest as her Magicka recharged.

Greta also looked over him. She didn't quite watch Yew sleep, but she did sneak peeks as he did so. It was amazing how feminine he looked. Very pretty, and more dainty then she was, that was for sure. Honestly, she could see him being able to pull off billowing dresses quite easily.

Greta shook her head. Really she shouldn't be thinking of such things. Men wearing women's clothing was strange. And besides, while he did act a little feminine, she suspected many Bretons did. It didn't mean he liked to dress up like that.

Finally, Yew began to stir.

"You've changed." Yew said. It took Greta a bit to realize he meant her clothes.

"Ah ha. Yes well, my clothes were in shreds." Greta said.

"How's mine?" Yew asked.

"Not great. Might want to change." Greta said. Yew nodded, got up and threw some robes on. He had the robe in his pack and when he put it on his mind felt oddly refreshed, he felt like he could cast a couple more spells. They got focused and ready and began entering Bleak Falls Barrow as quietly as they could.


	5. Chapter 5

Once within the confines of the Barrow, they heard talking up ahead. Quickly and quietly they moved behind a nearby platform. Yew had his bow drawn.

"If that dark elf wants to go on ahead, let him. Better than us risking our necks." A nord bandit said.

"What if Aravel doesn't come back? I want my share from that claw." A female bandit said.

"Just shut it and keep an eye out for trouble." The male nord grumbled.

Yew nocked an arrow, aimed and loosed it at the female bandit, catching her in the neck. She grabbed where the arrow struck and fell backwards. Immediately the man drew his sword and ran for cover. Yew nocked another arrow and loosed it into the male bandits leg. Impairing his mobility. Greta drew her mace and charged at him. After a quick scuffle, Greta managed to bash his head in. The two nodded at each other and stripped the corpses of gold, with Yew also taking the female's nearly full quiver of arrows.

The two began to make their way through the winding and eerie passages of the Barrow. Yew managed to find a magicka potion on some shelves but there wasn't much else to note. Just a long, mostly silent trek through dark abandoned hallways.

They eventually found their way into a large chamber complete with what seemed to be some kind of puzzle and a dead bandit, riddled with arrows, next to a switch. The door to the next room, however, was clear.

"Huh. Looks like whatever was happening here...someone solved." Greta said.

"Maybe Aravel." Yew said.

"If he's not the guy down there." Greta said gesturing to the corpse. Yew nodded.

"Let's keep moving. Just be careful, this place seems to be trapped." Yew said, and he gestured to the wall slits on either side of the dead bandit. Greta agreed. The two walked into the next room. There was a table with a Health potion and a book on it. Yew took the potion of course and then took the tiem to read the short story within. Somehow he felt like his skill with one handed weapons had increased.

"Greta, I think you should take a look at this." Yew said and handed the book over. Greta nodded and gave it a read.

"Huh. This story has some useful strategies in how to utilize one handed weapons in battle." Greta said. Yew, of course, realized this was some sort of game mechanic. However, it seemed like it had that sort of rationalization attached to it. It was still clear that the universe worked a bit differently from his own, even when it came to learning.

"I'll keep this in my pack if you don't mind." Greta said. Yew nodded and she put it away.

In the next room, there was a large hole in the ground, one that had a ramp leading down it. Greta took lead, and Yew followed close behind her, his hand on his dagger. Suddenly they heard claws on the ripe and squeaking. Before Greta could draw her mace she was bitten by a skeever. Greta grunted but managed to draw her mace and bash in the skeevers head. Yew drew his dagger and went to slashing the second Skeever who had been angling in an attempt to flank Greta.

The skeever was able to slash into Yew's wrist, even as Yew cut the Skeever with several slashes. Then Yew dealt the death blow by stabbing his dagger into the eye of the monster. Greta rushed ahead, and while she took a couple of wounds from the last skeever, it soon lay dead at her feet.

"Those skeevers fought like mad." Greta said, tending to her wounds with her magic.

"Yes. They seemed particularly vicious. Perhaps driven madder by hunger or disease?" Yew said.

"Perhaps. In any case make sure you make sure to report to me any symptoms of sickness as soon as possible. Either I will be able to heal it myself otherwise we can take you to the Temple of Kyreneth for treatment as soon as possible." Greta said.

"Alright." Yew replied. Greta then tended his wounds with magic. Before too long they were once again on their way through the Barrow. Faintly, they heard a voice call out.

"Is there someone coming? Is that you Harknir? Bjorn? Soling?" The voice called out. They continued carefully until they found a doorway completely covered by spiderwebs. Yew took out his dagger and hacked through the webbing. They walked through to find themselves in a hall covered in spider webs and spider eggs.

"Th-This is..." Greta said.

"...Fascinating." Yew said. Back on Earth he had always been a bit afraid and disgusted by spiders. That was still true to a lesser extent here, but mostly he found himself captivated by the sight. He supposed his personality had changed somewhat, being a druid now. And it was certainly true that spider silk could be quite useful. However, his new fascination with nature was going to take some getting used to.

"N-Not what I would call it." Greta squeaked. Then a giant spider plopped down in front of them. It didn't make very much sound at all, which again intrigued Yew. This spider, despite its massive size, was still quite silent in its movements.

When it spit acid at him, he was quite surprised, but managed to duck out of the way of it. Yew was again impressed. The acid seemed fairly potent. He again quickly cast Piercing thorn and it went rushing into the spider's side. The creature let out an unearthly shriek, which caused Greta, who had been charging to stop. She'd been paralyzed with fear. And Yew realized after several moments that he was too. His hands were shaking and his mind had been completely blank for a moment. Yew imagined it must be even worse for Greta who had expressed more fear then him when entering this spider's lair. He needed to do something, but what? For some reason, his thoughts were just so scattered.

The spider pounced, knocking Greta off her feet. It began hitting her with his forelegs and biting into her with it's fangs. He needed to stop this. His thoughts came back to him. He repeated the spell and another thorn went rushing into the behind of the giant spider. The spider got off of her and turned it's attention to Yew. It scuttled quick as it could over to Yew. All the while Yew was casting another spell.

"Sparks." Yew said and a small arc of electricity went coursing out of his hands into the giant spider. The smell of burning spider flesh filled the air, but it only slowed down the giant spider. It continued to charge for Yew. He didn't have time for drawing his bow and so far, all his spells had failed to drop the monster and he didn't want to use any more. He still had his dagger in his hand. He could outlast the thing if he just kept slashing and dodging.

Yew slashed the spider, causing it to bleed even more. The spider barely flinched and instead used it's forelimb to knock Yew to the ground. He dropped his dagger and it went clattering to the ground. The spider bared it's fangs, which glittered with venom. Yew felt himself on the verge of death. He was almost accepting of it. Like it was inevitable. He hadn't felt like this before. No, that wasn't accurate. He had felt that way before. But not on Earth. It was in High Rock that he felt it. But where? When? It all seemed so distant.

He supposed it didn't matter now. The spider's fangs were close to his neck. He couldn't cast any spells now, because his hands had been pinned down by the spiders was over.

Suddenly The spider pulled back. Soon it was off him, rearing and letting out small shrieks. Yew got to his feet as quickly as he could. It had engaged with Greta, who was covered in wounds but was still fighting violently, swinging her mace and letting out battle cries of her own. Yew felt a surge of rage within him, he cast the spell Piercing Thorn and the thorn sailed over Greta's shoulder, embedding itself into one of the spider's eyes. It gurgled and fell, spasming into a death rattle.

Greta bashed the Spiders head until it cracked open. Then the two of them caught their breath.

"By the Nine that was a terrible battle." Greta said.

"Ha. It was." Yew said, but he felt a sense of adrenaline. And he also felt more powerful. It occurred to Yew that if he could gain experience like when he read the book, he could likely level up. Though he wondered if that was a process He had to perform himself and allocate points or if it was automatic.

"H-Hey! Get me down from here! Get me down." Said a voice. The two of them looked up to see a Dunmer wrapped up in the spider webs.

"Don't leave me up here for Arkay's sake." The Dunmer said. Yew and Greta looked at each other. Likely he was one of the bandits. Almost certainly, in fact. So they couldn't exactly trust him. However, they couldn't leave him high and dry either. Yew went over to retrieve his dagger while Greta walked closer to the Dunmer.

"You did it. You killed it. So cut me down before anything else shows up." Aravel said. He sounded pretty desperate, which Greta could understand.

"Where's the golden claw?" Greta asked.

"Yes, the claw. I know how it works. The claw, the markings, the door in the Hall of Stories. I know how they all fit together." The Dunmer said.

"What are you talking about?" Greta said.

"Help me down and I'll show you. You won't believe the power the Nords have hidden there." The dunmer said.

"Hand over the claw first." Greta said.

"Does it look like I can move? You have to cut me down first." The dunmer said. Greta eyed the bandit suspiciously.

"It's fine Greta. I'll do it. If he betrays us, he will die." Yew said, having retrieved his dagger and moved to join Greta. Yew then cut him down from his web in a few, quick movements.

"You fool! Why would I share the treasure with anyone!" The dunmer said and began to sprint away. Yew calmly sheathed his dagger and drew his bow. Yew and Greta pursued Aravel through the winding corridors, as soon as they entered a circular room, Yew nocked an arrow and loosed it into the bandit's leg. He fell to his knees with a cry of pain.

"Wait! Don't-!" The dunmer started. But Yew soon silenced him with another arrow to the chest. Then Yew went over to his body, put away his bow and slit his throat with his dagger to make sure.

"I know that must seem brutal but-" Yew said. Greta shrugged.

"You did warn him. He was a bandit. Who knows how many people he's hurt. How many have begged him for mercy. And he seemed utterly unrepentant." Greta said. Frankly, it seemed amazing to Yew that he had accepted violence so easily, but a part of him knew that he had killed before in this world. He just couldn't remember.

Yew went through his body, grabbing the Golden Claw and his journal. His journal revealed the true nature of the claw. It was a key to open a door somewhere in the Barrow. Yew showed it to Greta.

"So what do you think? Want to see if we can open that door up?" Yew said. Greta nodded.

"We should rest and heal beforehand though." Greta said. The two of them did so. Greta healed their wounds and then they sat down on the floor. Yew found it slightly distasteful to do so, but he really was pretty exhausted. Plus he needed to replenish his spells. To do so he took out his grimoire and meditated on each of his spells. Drawing power from doing so.

"Is that a Druid's spellbook?" Greta said, as Yew put it back in his pack.

"Yes. I need to replenish my connection to these spells, through meditation on nature. Though in truth, the spells I have all used are cantrips, so once I become powerful enough I will be able to use them as long as I have energy." Yew said.

"I see. So Druids are very powerful then." Greta said.

"Eventually. But at first other mages have the advantage. They can cast spells as long as they have Magicka. We have a set amount until we have to meditate again." Yew said.

"I see." Greta said.

Yew then stood up. Greta couldn't help but notice how he looked even more feminine in those robes then he did in his hide armor. She found it sorta...pleasing.

"Let's get going." Yew said. Greta got up and followed him.


	6. Chapter 6

They continued deeper into the dank ruin that was the barrow. They made it to a room where corpses were laid out in stone shelves, mummified and buried with weapons. Yew noticed that Greta seemed nervous and he really couldn't blame her. This whole place was eerie and he did have a strange feeling about all this. Almost as if the corpses would start moving at any second.

 

And of course, they did. The mummified bodies moved off their shelves grabbing their weapons and moved in for the kill. Yew got out his bow and took aim at one of them. He loosed an arrow into it and hit it right in the torso. The dragur did not react. Yew loosed again and hit it in the head. Again no reaction that could tell him if it was even close to killing it.

 

Once more Yew loosed an arrow and it hit the dragur in the leg, causing it to fall, but it just kept crawling. Yew cast spark and finally that caused the thing to burst into flames for a short time. When the flames extinguished, the creature was back to it's lifeless state.

 

Greta meanwhile had been having a dance with one of the other dragur. Ducking and dodging blows while raining down thrusts of her mace, but picking up a couple of cuts of her own. Once she destroyed it's head, it fell lifeless to the ground. A third Dragur began shambling closer to her, and she remembered her training in the restoration school. Summoning up her magicka and concentrating it into a spell she whispered, "Smite your enemy Kyreneth, the undead abomination that lies before me." 

 

Then she sent a ball of light shooting from her left hand into the dragur, causing the creature to explode into a rain of limbs.

 

Greta was exhausted by this. She was breathing heavy and she dropped her mace to the floor. Greta was inexperienced in casting that spell and put a little too much magicka in it. Combine that with the energy she expended fighting the other dragur and she felt both physically and mentally exhausted. She wasn't used to doing so much fighting in a single day.

 

"Greta, you all right?" Yew asked his companion. She nodded.

 

"J-Just a little low on Magicka." She said. 

 

"Here. Drink this." Yew said handing her a magicka potion. She drank it down quickly and felt her internal fortitude growing again.

 

"Feel better?" Yew asked.

 

"Yeah." Greta said. 

 

"Up to keep going?" Yew said. He knew it would only get more difficult from here. Still, the thought of getting his hands on treasure was very tempting. After all the only way to gurrante his and Greta's safety was to pursue power. Minding one's own business wasn't enough in this world, the danger would come to them. And it was also the only way they could change things for the better. Power for it's own sake...that wasn't entirely a non-factor either. Yew wanted to relearn the spells he knew he had to have forgotten. He wanted to become a powerful druid, a hero.

 

And he wanted to have lots of sex. Power was an aphrodisiac after all, he's pretty sure Machiavelli said that, especially if he didn't become an asshole along the way. 

 

"Yeah. I'm fine." Greta said. 

 

"Ok." Yew said. 

 

So they continued on. Before they got much further a Restless Draugr crawled out of it's shelf and proceeded to attack with a large axe.

 

"Let me deal with it." Greta said confidently and fiercely as she drew her mace and swung it at the Draugr. It blocked quite easily with it's great ax and countered with a sweep of it's axe. Greta managed to dodge, throwing herself against the wall to the side of her to avoid the blow.

 

"Smite!" Greta said, launching a small ball of light at the undead. It recoiled in pain as it found itself on fire. However, it kept approaching Greta. Greta lifted her mace and swung it at the draugr's skull as hard as she could, cracking it. Then she hit it again and it broke. Finally, the draugr fell tot he ground, extinguished.

 

She withdrew her mace and brushed herself off. 

 

"See, even a lowly wandering cleric like me can do some good against undead." Greta said. 

 

"Amazing Greta. You are quite extraordinary." Yew said. 

 

"I just had to adjust the spell a little bit. I think I can be a lot more useful now." Greta said.

 

"Does that spell only work on undead?" I asked.

 

"Yes. I don't have any offensive spells that target the living." Greta said.

 

"I see. That's good to know." I said. 

 

They continued through the barrow. Yew used an acid spray to take down a few dragur that popped up as they made their progress, and Greta continued to make effective use of her mace and smite spell. This was the point that they managed to find more than just a couple of coins here and there and actually found some real treasure. They found a decent pile of coins in a treasure chest, true, but they also managed to dig up a scroll of fireball and a scroll of Lesser ward. Which Greta graciously let Yew have. 

 

Finally Yew and Greta arrive at the door. Yew enters in the combination on the door's lock and inserts the Golden Claw, unlocking the door. Inside was a long hall, at the end of which was a coffin in a place of honor, a treasure chest and a wall with a strange set of glowing runes on it. They made their way to the end of the room. Inside the chest, Yew found a staff of sparks, a spell tome, a couple of magical scrolls and a spare Iron dagger. He grabbed them all and stashed them away, the iron dagger could be sold and the rest could prove useful. On a small altar, Yew found a couple of potions and some soul gems, which they also snagged up.

 

Both Yew and Greta carefully looked at the wall. Yew was fairly confident, memory issues and all, that if this runic language was something his character would know, he would be able to read it. He wasn't sure where this idea came from, but it was a pretty strong feeling he had. 

 

"Do you know what that says?" Yew asked.

 

"No, I really don't." Greta said. The two then heard something and turned around. Behind them, a powerful looking dragur with a huge ax was behind them, glaring with it's strange glowing eyes. Greta drew her mace and the undead turned it's attention to her.

 

"Fus." It said in a strange creaking voice, and Greta went flying into the wall. The dragur then began shuffling towards Yew.

 

"Sparks." Yew said and sent electricity coursing into the dragurs body. The dragur was able to shrug it off and gave Yew a slash with his axe.

Yew now had a large but fortunately fairly shallow seeming cut across his abdomen. Yew backed off a bit, and used the gesture for piercing thorn, casting it and sending a thorn through the creatures rib cage, it did manage to at least crack a rib before falling to the ground. Yew kept backing up until his back was against the wall, He had to dodge a couple of sweeps from the dragurs ax but he knew he was running out of time, he had to finish this thing off. 

 

So he found his moment and ran past the dragur overlord, making his way to the coffin he had risen from. He hit the being with another round of sparks, then another but though it slowed the dragur down, it seemed to do very little against him. He had to make a decisive death blow, but how? He couldn't just rely on Greta to save him.

 

"Fus." It intoned again and He went flying off the raised platform and hitting the ground hard, knocking the wind out of me. He gasped as he laid there for several moments stunned. Yew heard a great clatter as it seemed Greta and the Dragur were locked in a fierce battle which all ended with another mighty "fus".

 

He needed to get up and stop this. He couldn't let this thing kill Greta. He got up and limped his way back up the platform, seeing the dragur with its ax lifted above Greta's body. 

 

"Piercing Thorn!" Yew said and unleashed a large thorn that crashed into the dragurs cracked skull and broke it, it fell limp to the ground. Yew felt, again, a sudden surge of power. 

 

"You alright Greta?" Yew asked.

 

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Thanks very much. I owe you my life." Greta said.

 

"It's fine. We owe each other our lives." Yew said. He was confident that he wouldn't have been able to survive without her. Once again, Greta healed their wounds. 

 

Further examination of the Dragur's sarcophagus revealed a large stone tablet with some sort of inscription on it. They decided on taking it with them and continued their investigation. They found a door to a secret passage leading out of the barrow. On the way, they picked up a treasure chest that had more gold, a couple rings, and a few more potions. They headed out of the barrow and were relieved to once again be outdoors.

 

It was time to make their way back into town.


	7. Chapter 7

The trip back wasn't too difficult. Nothing much got in their way and they were able to make it quite easily back into town. Though by the time they did, it was late evening. So they decided to go to the Sleeping Giant Inn, order some food and then get some rest. 

 

Since they were quite hungry from not eating since morning, and they had quite a bit of coin between them, they ordered a virtual feast. Seared salmon, chicken breasts, sweet rolls, venison, tomatoes and more filled their table. 

 

"This is quite alot. Work up an appetite adventuring?" Delphine asked.

 

"Yeah. We managed to clear out Bleak Falls Barrow and the nearby tower of bandits and darker things." Yew said, in between bites of a goat leg. Everything here tasted much more flavorful then he had anticipated. It was a different diet then Yew was used to, but it was still quite enjoyable.

 

"Huh. That's pretty impressive." Delphine said. Something about her tone of voice seemed odd to Yew. 

 

"Ha ha. Yeah. All in a days work for two mighty adventurers like us." Greta said with a wink at Yew. 

 

"Indeed. Well, you two enjoy all that now." Delphine said and walked off. Yew couldn't help tracing her swaying hips with his eyes. Honestly, he had felt pretty horny since he got her. He wondered why that was. Was it just that this guy, the real Yew, had a strong libido? He couldn't be sure. Yew had definitely gone through some personality changes since he found himself in this world, in this body. He wondered if he would eventually lose his old self entirely. He wasn't entirely certain that would be a bad thing. That day had been terrifying, but it had also been exhilarating. 

 

 

"So...we're going to return the claw tommorow." Greta said. As they finished their meal.

 

"Yeah." Yew said.

 

"That means you get to see Camilla again." Greta said.

 

"You'll get to see her too." Yew said. Greta blushed.

 

"P-Please, I'm not interested in her like that." Greta said.

 

"You sure? You seemed like you might have been." Yew said.

 

"N-No. I-I have no such interest in women, in that way. Though it's fine to love people of either sex. Mara and Dibella support love and passion between all people and-" Greta said. She was stumbling over her words a bit. Clearly panicking. 

 

"You don't have to get all worked up. I understand." Yew said, casually taking a sip of Alto wine.

 

"O-Ok. Sorry." Greta said.

 

"Nothing to apologize for. But yes. I am interested in Camilla as you have seen. I intend to sleep with her, if she will have me." Yew said. Greta nearly choked on her wine. 

 

"I-I see. Well, if you do, make sure you take care." Greta said.

 

"Of course. I am neither reckless nor cruel." Yew said. He knew already of a concoction that he could brew that would work as birth control. And of course, he wasn't going to hurt her. Neither physically nor emotionally. 

 

"Ok then. I hope that it happens, and I hope you have fun." Greta said, she gave a smile but there seemed to be a bit of melancholy clouding it.

 

"You sure your all right Greta?" Yew asked.

 

"Y-Yes of course." Greta said.

 

They spent a little time resting in their chairs, listening to the music and exchanging small talk. Then they got two separate rooms and went to them.

 

Yew spent a bit of time looking over his Druidic Grimoire. Within it there were some pages he hadn't much noticed. They described a bit of the initiation process that it took to become a full Druid. It was quite a lengthy and trying affair. And it had some consequences. Full Druids were constantly lustful, tied as they were to nature and the desire to breed. Full Druids also could not use non-druidic spells, and were forbidden from using armor made of metal. In fact, much of their rules were quite similar sounding to DnD brand Druids. 

 

It made Yew wonder. Why exactly was he so similar to his DnD druid character? Even his magic worked more like DnD then like it was in Elder Scrolls. He hadn't played much of Skyrim, but it seemed that he was somewhat apart from it in a strange way, but still integrated enough that it wouldn't be too jarring. What was happening? And his memories of the old Yew, the one whose body he had now been inhabiting, they were still not back. But he could full them, somewhere under the surface of his mind, deep in his subconscious. When would they return? He could use them. It might help him survive in this place. 

 

Whatever. He had his objective for the moment. Return the claw and see how things play out with Camilla. Then keep working for coin. Try to get more powerful. He shut his grimoire, closed his eyes and went to sleep. 

 

As soon as he did he was confronted with a level up screen. It was a strange one. It told him that he had leveled up 2 levels, from level 1-3. It told him a list of spells he could now cast: Entangle, Vile Thorns, Summon nature's ally, and several others. It also told him that he could now take on a Familiar, a creature that would be his companion and would become more powerful, being useful in combat and with scouting. 

 

However, this level up screen gave him a list of Perks. These were divided into separate categories: Druidism, Archery, Alchemy, Speech, and One-Handed. He was pretty sure this was how Skyrim worked. Looking them over he selected a perk from Druidism called: Avenger, which increased the power of his offensive spells and gave him an extra spell slot to use for an additional offensive spell. He also picked a perk from Speech called: Seducer, which increased his sexual appeal, which had a "broad range of applications." 

 

Happy with his selections he "clicked confirm" and the "dream" ended with the menu fading away.


	8. Chapter 8

Yew woke up, meditated and prepared his spells. Then got up and got breakfast. 

 

"You still have on your robe." Greta said, looking at him oddly.

 

"Yeah. It does give me a couple more spells I can use. That and I checked my reflection and I think it does quite great things to my figure." Yew said and gave her a wink. Greta blushed. 

 

"It does do that." Greta said. It was odd talking to Yew. It was almost like she was talking to a woman, only definitely not. Yew was in a strange sort of uncanny valley in her mind, both male and female in character, which she found strangely appealing. She'd never met anyone like him.

 

The two of them finished breakfast and headed to the Riverwood trader. When they walked in, Camilla was sitting down reading and Lucan was behind the store counter.

 

"Your back!" Camilla said, looking up from her book. She seemed quite relieved and happy to see the pair. 

 

"Ah. Welcome, you get back the claw?" Lucan said, sounding a bit more personable then he had last time.

 

"Yes, we did." Yew said as he pulled the claw out of his pack, and gave it to the shopkeep, who proceeded to look it over, nod and smile.

 

"Huh. It looks a little smaller but it's definitely the same claw. Good work my friend, something for the work." Lucan said, tossing Yew a bag of coins. Camilla had stood up and begun moving closer to Yew.

 

"Wow, you look quite good today. You in those robes...it's a good look on you." Camilla said. She sounded, to be more aroused, less in control then she had during their first meeting. Yew wondered if that was due to the perk he selected.

 

"Thanks. Your looking beautiful as ever, Camilla." Yew said, taking her hand and placing a kiss on it. Yew noticed her sparkling eyes and wide grin. He was closing in, he thought.

 

"Could-Could I have a look at your inventory please? I'd also like to sell some of the things we obtained in our adventure." Greta said to Lucan.

 

"Uh...sure. Of course." Lucan said. Eagar himself to avoid the awkward situation of watching his sister flirt with a stranger.

 

"I would very much like to take things further with you. However..." Camilla's face darkened. 

 

"However...?" Yew asked. 

 

"I have two other courters. I'd like you to speak with them. I don't want any drama to take place. I'd like it if we all could become friends. And if possible, you and I could become something more." Camilla said, she was very close to him and had put her hand on his shoulder. 

 

"I'd like that. But you must know that I won't stay in this town forever." Yew said.

 

"I understand. I am perfectly ok with you going back on the road. Your an adventurer after all. It's your nature. I think we can have our fun whenever we pass through and I'll be fine if you seek other company on the road and you'll be fine if I seek company here in Riverwood." Camilla said. 

 

"Sounds like a deal." Yew said with a smile. This was working out perfectly, Yew thought. He was exhilarated. He was going to have a lover and she was going to be beautiful, understanding and sexy. Yew gave her a playful smack on the bottom. Camilla giggled. 

 

"I'll see you in a bit. After I've talked things over with those two." Yew said. He left Greta to continue to barter with Lucan and headed over to find one of the two. He found what he believed to be Sven first, a blonde Nord who did look fairly attractive, Yew had to admit.

 

"Hello, do you happen to be Sven?" Yew asked.

 

"Yes. That is my name." Sven said. 

 

"I am acquainted with Camilla and I wanted to talk to you. Man to man." Yew said. Sven took stock of the Breton druid. 

 

"I don't much see a man in front of me. But what is it you want?" Sven said. 

 

"I am going to enter into an open relationship with Camilla. And I need you to be ok with this. As Camilla's friend, you should understand that this is what she wants." Yew said.

 

"I'm not going to let some effeminate Breton stranger swoop in and sleep with Camilla. And she won't like your notion either." Sven said.

 

"She's already agreed to it. In fact she was the one who brought it up." Yew said. 

 

"That's impossible...you've been sent by Faendal haven't you? Your trying to get me to give up on her, or turn us against each other? Well, I've got another thing coming for both you and that filthy Wood elf. I will never give up on Camilla. Ever. You got that pretty boy." Sven said, getting in Yew's face. Bad attitude or no, Yew could see why Camilla had put up with this man's delusions for so long. He was quite attractive and Yew's body couldn't help but react to that. Still, he was a bastard. And Yew needed him out of the way.

 

"I see. Is it possible we could duel for it? I beat you, you stay out of my way. You beat me, I never speak to Camilla again?" Yew said. 

 

"No way. I'm not going to risk it all on some duel with a cheating magic user. Mages, Bretons, elves. You are all the same. We should hang the lot of you. Skyrim would be a better place for it." Sven said.

 

"Hm. Well then. I suppose I'll have to deal with you some other way then. Don't worry. Us conniving Bretons and Mages and Elves are known for our problem-solving skills." Yew said, with a glare and a small smirk. Sven paled slightly. Yew turned and walked away.

 

Now to talk to Faendal. Yew found him quickly enough. He was the only Bosmer in town, he was chopping up some firewood when Yew walked up to him. Faendal was pretty attractive looking himself. Again it seemed no surprising notion that Camilla would be flattered by these two's attentions, by looks alone. 

 

"You are Faendal correct?" Yew asked.

 

"Yes, I am. And you are a Druid. Heirs of the old Druids of Galen. Your order is small but rising in esteem since the collapse of the Mages Guild, throughout the Empire. There are rumors of several of your order here in Skyrim. But you seem to be a newcomer." Faendal said. All that he said was true, Yew realized. 

 

"How do you know all that?" Yew said. 

 

"A hunter around these parts can learn much if he keeps his ears open. What do you have to say?" Faendal said.

 

"Myself and Camilla are going to enter a relationship. She wants to make sure that you and Sven stay out of it, and don't cause any unnecessary drama." Yew said. 

 

"Unnecessary drama huh? So you expect me to just let you bed Camilla with no complaints." Faendal said.

 

"Pretty much." Yew said. 

 

"Then you take me for the wrong type of mer. I will definitely have to object to such a relationship. With you being on the road and Camilla forced to worry-" Faendal said.

 

"Save your breath. She is well aware of what my life will be. We are pursuing an open relationship, so if she wills the two of you can be together when I'm away." Yew said. This gave Faendal pause.

 

"I am...alright with this. Still, there is the matter of that idiotic nordic bard, Sven." Faendal said.

 

"Yes. He is less than accommodating." Yew said.

 

"Of course. He's dull-witted and bigoted, like most of his kind. I've written up a letter, in as close as I can get to Sven's childish scrawl. If you give it to Camilla and say it's from him, she will no longer concern herself with such a man, and we will be rid of him for good." Faendal said. 

 

It wasn't perhaps the most ethical way to go about things. But considering his racist and anti-magic stance, Yew couldn't bring himself to feel overly bad about opening Camilla's eyes to the foolish bard's true nature.

 

"It shall be done." Yew said, grabbing the letter. 

 

"A wise choice Druid. As long as we keep out of each other's way, we'll get along fine. Maybe we can even go out on a hunt one day." Faendal said, with a devious smirk, before walking away. Something about that look on his face gave Yew some pause. Yew headed back to the Riverwood trader. 

 

"Your back? How did it go with the other boys?" Camilla said, getting up from her chair once more.

 

"Faendal seemed fairly accommodating. Sven was...less so. He cursed me all magic users, Bretons and Elves and gave me this letter to deliver to you." Yew said. 

 

"That oaf. He'll need a good tongue lashing from me after that. I'm not a native from Skyrim either." Camilla said, taking the letter and opening it up. As she read it her face fell, then turned to rage.

 

"That bastard. He thinks I'll be nothing more than a housemaid to him? Our friendship is over." Camilla said. 

 

"Sorry. I know it hurts when a friend turns out to be someone different then you expect." Yew said. He didn't remember any such friends, not consciously. Not Earth friends. But still he felt like his statement was true. That this Yew did have false friends.

 

"Pft. Yeah. I always knew he was a fool, but I never thought...It's nothing. We should talk more later. I want to talk to Faendal myself." Camilla said.

 

"Sounds good." Yew said. Though he felt a bit nervous. What if the Bosmer decided to betray him? Though this fear was quickly assuaged. Implicating Yew would only implicate himself. Besides, he seemed to hate Sven a great deal more then he hated Yew.

 

"See ya around." Camilla said and left. 

 

"I managed to get a few more supplies, and a bit of extra gold from selling some stuff off." Greta said.

 

"Good. I wanted to check out that tower at the edge of town." Yew said.

 

"Oh, that strange place? That's a magical shop. The wizard who lives their seems quite potent. Some folks were less then happy about allowing him in, but personally, I think a powerful magic user really only serves to make the town a bit safer. And considering the dragons that are about-" Lucan said.

 

"Dragons. What do you know about dragons." Yew said. Once again he felt a thrill of panic. Fighting a dragon wasn't high on his priority list.

 

"Uh not much. Only that one destroyed Helgan and flew past here a few days ago. A day before you arrived in town actually. Then word came that we are getting a permanent garrison of Whiterun guards by tommorow and that a couple of travelers and the guards of Whiterun defeated a Dragon attacking one of their guard towers a bit out of the city. There are rumors that we have a Dragonborn. Though I don't know much about Nord superstitions." Lucan said. 

 

"Those travelers...any word on their description?" Yew asked. 

 

"Couple of ladies as I do recall. One's a Redguard woman, the other a Nord. That's all I know." Lucan said. 

 

"Ok. Alright. Thank you for the information." Yew said. He began to walk away to leave, Greta in tow.

 

"Yew...your shaking." Greta said, quietly. It was true. Yew took a moment to breathe and refocus. He couldn't panic. He had to get stronger and he had to find the Dragonborn. Those two things were what mattered most. 

 

"I'm alright. We should check out the rest of town. See what more we could find out." Yew said.

 

"O-Ok." Greta said.


	9. Chapter 9

They left and almost Immediately bumped into another Nord man. 

 

"Oh. Sorry about that friends. I may have been a bit overeager to enter the trader. Need to get back to Solitude, and I need some supplies before I head out." The man said. He was wearing Imperial armor and had a gladius on his hip. 

 

"No problem. Name's Yew. I'm a fairly recent traveler from High Rock. Pleasure to meet you." Yew said.

 

"Hadvar, a proud member of the imperial legion. Your one of those uh... druid's right? Strange times indeed, with them rising to such prominence." Hadvar said, then looked over to Greta. 

 

"And you are that healer and priestess of Kynereth right? Greta?" Hadvar said.

 

"Uh, yeah. That's me." Greta said. 

 

"I see word of my order has gotten around." Yew said.

 

"Yes...it is of much interest to the legion. We'd be pleased to have a member of our order in our ranks. You could accompany me to Solitude. I could use the company." Hadvar said. 

 

"For the moment, my role is to serve as an impartial observer." Yew said. 

 

"I expected you might say as much. Still, the offer is open. For you as well Greta. Now then, I must be going." Hadvar said and made motions to go into the shop. 

 

"Hold on. Do you happen to know anything about dragons?" Yew asked. 

 

"Dragons. Yeah. I was at Helgen when the creature burned it to the ground. I barely escaped with my life. But if the guards at Whiterun can kill them, then anyone can. It just gives me a greater reason to unite Skyrim. Only a united Skyrim within the Empire can have a hope of destroying these creatures once and for all. And resolving any other threats to the world." Hadvar said.

 

"Thank you. That is helpful." Yew said.

 

"Is your order trying to resolve this threat? I know much of it prefers to keep it's internal workings to themselves but..." Hadvar said.

 

"They will be." Yew responded. And he was absolutely certain of this.

 

"Good. That is...comforting." Hadvar said and bowed his head a bit, before entering the trader.

 

"To the tower, Greta." Yew said, as he walked away. Greta blinked and followed him. 

 

The interior of the tower was quite impressive. It had both an Alchemy and Enchanting desk, a large array of books and spell tomes. Potions and alchemical supplies, as well as some staves, are tucked away all over the place. A bearded dunmer wizard sat in a chair, having a lunch of bread and beef. 

 

"Welcome. Welcome. I don't get many visitors around these parts. This is my Wondrous emporium of magic. It's a pleasure to meet you druid, cleric." He said nodding at Yew and Greta in turn.

 

"How did you know I was a druid?" Yew said. He was getting frustrated by people instantly identifying his class. Was it somehow that obvious?

 

"You are wearing the robes of a neophyte of your order. I suppose you're not used to people identifying you as such. Few people can identify you as a druid. Those who can at a glance should be watched out for. They may know more then they appear." The dunmer said.

 

"What are you talking about?" Yew asked.

 

"You have a mission. One of considerable importance. Not the hero of destiny...at least not the destiny of Skyrim, but you will play an important part in events to come." The wizard said.

 

"How do you know all this?" Yew asked.

 

"Because I've read the Elder Scrolls and divined long on their meaning. I've explored the outer planes and journeyed to other worlds. The fate of Skyrim is important to Tamriel and the fate of Tamriel is important to the fabric of the multiverse. That is why you've been called here." The wizard said.

 

"Who are you? What is my fate?" Yew asked.

 

"I have already told you much. Perhaps more then I should have. You should go, my friend. Spend time as you will. You will know when the time to depart this place is." The Wizard said. 

Yew paused and gave this some thought. He was some kind of hero? Some kind of savior? But this was all wrong. It wasn't like he had ever been someone special back on earth... but maybe Yew had been special here? Maybe he had something, some kind of knowledge that proved useful to him. But it wasn't like Yew was some big expert on Elder Scroll lore. He was very casual. He kicked around a bit in Morrowind and got roughly halfway through Oblivion, and he hadn't been taking that seriously. He played Skyrim because he wanted an open world rpg to mod, quest and relax in. He cared little of the setting, characters or lore. 

 

While he was thinking all this, he glanced at Greta. She hadn't reacted. In fact her face and body were frozen. She wasn't even breathing. 

 

"You've stopped time haven't you?" Yew said.

 

"Not me directly no. But time has stopped for everyone but us." The wizard said. 

 

"So she won't remember anything you told me?" Yew asked.

 

"Not since I've created her. I suggest you don't let her in on our little conversation. Greta is important, but she does not need to know it." The wizard said. 

 

"Ok then. Is there anything else you can tell me?" Yew said.

 

"Nothing else but this: Relax and have fun. Your fate is serious and you should treat it as such. But there is no need to be grim about it. Bed women and men. Explore the region. Meet friends. Take in the local culture. The gods have great things for you, but they mean for you to live a full, happy life. Don't hesitate in doing so." The wizard said. 

 

"I see." Yew said with a nod. He felt a bit overwhelmed. Then the Wizard's demeanor seemed to change.

 

"So, want to browse my wares? I have spell tomes, scrolls, and staves for experienced magic users." The Wizard said. 

 

"Uh...huh." Greta looked around like she was quite surprised by all the magical items she saw. To Yew's eyes, they seemed quite potent.

 

"Sadly, I don't think we could really afford or use any of this at the moment." Yew said. 

 

"That's too bad. Make sure you came back when you have more gold in your purse, and more experience under your belt." The wizard said. 

 

"Will do." Yew said. He intended to do so as soon as he could. Maybe then he would have more answers for him. 

 

"What's your name ser?" Greta asked.

 

"My name is no concern. I am but a simple hedge wizard, selling my wares, both theose I have found in my wanderings and those I have enchanted myself. That's all any should concern themselves with." He replied.

 

"Let's get going Greta. I want to harvest some herbs before lunch." Yew said. Greta nodded and followed him out of the store.


	10. Chapter 10

The next couple of days unfolded in relative peace. Yew gathered alchemical supplies, made potions, lived out of the inn, flirted with Camilla and occasionally taking care of packs of dangerous animals, usually by calming them, but occasionally by putting diseased or starving animals out of their misery. He was having a pretty good time all things considered. Sure it was a bit odd not having access to the internet and his gaming consoles, or indeed most of the conveniences of modern life, however, he found that he was able to adapt fairly quickly. Magic and alchemy were able to substitute for much, and he and Greta had a few books to keep themselves entertained when conversation, adventure or craft couldn't stave off the boredom. 

 

Still, he was getting pretty restless. And horny. Masturbation was useful in helping control his lust, but it did little to relieve it, espcially as the days went on. Yew decided he should talk to Camilla. So far, they had only flirted, groped and made out with each other. He came to the shop by the evening. Lucan was out that day. Gone to Whiterun to trade at the Market and most likely pick up a whore. So Camilla was there, once again, alone and reading. 

 

"Yew. To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" Camilla said.

 

"I need you." Yew said. He came closer to her. 

 

"I see. So you've taken your chance while my brother's gone away." Camilla said.

 

"I'd have come here either way. I. Need. You." Yew said and he began to kiss her. His lips were soft and he was gentle in spite of the desperate need that infused his voice. Camilla had never known a man even close to him. One of his hands strayed down to her bottom, gripping it gently but firmly. His other hand did the same to her left breast, as his tongue entered her mouth. He was a good kisser, Camilla realized, he had done this a lot. Camilla wondered how many people he had fucked before. Camilla imagined quite a lot and that made her horny. Sven hadn't touched a woman in his life, and Faendal had only slept with three other women he had assured, but Yew was different. Yew was a wanton who likely fucked whoever passed his fancy. Camilla loved that thought. That she wasn't the first and wouldn't be the last. She pictured him going down on another woman, one more shapely than her. She thought of him being penetrated by a strong muscular man. This notion gave her a thrill. 

 

Yew felt every part of her body. Eagar to use his hands and mouth to experience every bit of her. 

 

"Hold Yew. We should take this upstairs, and I should get undressed." Camilla said. Yew removed himself and nodded. She was in control, Camilla realized, and that gave her another thrill. Yew followed her up the stairs. He felt much like a child. He was placing all of his trust in Camilla. When prompted, Yew knew what to do. However, without prompting, he was just an inexperienced boy from earth. The idea that Camilla was in control gave him a thrill as well.

 

Camilla stripped away her clothes, and Yew basked in her nude form. It was beautiful, and she spun around to give him a look at all of her. 

 

"You should probably take off your clothes now." Camilla said, giggling a bit. Yew nodded and took off his robes. Camilla gasped. She hadn't entirely known what to expect, but it wasn't quite this. She could see that he was truly quite pale, but beautiful. His form, was feminine, with wide hips for a man, and a larger bottom with a feminine shape. His cock was small, he was rock hard and fully erect and he was just about 4 inches. He stared down at the floor and all his confidence and bravado and assertiveness had disappeared. He wasn't some powerful adventurer or experienced seducer. Not now. Now he was a frightened little boy, scared of what she would say. What she would do.

 

The contrast was strangely enticing. 

 

"I...I'm sorry. I-I know I'm small but-" Yew said. 

 

"It's ok. It's ok. You're lovely dear." Camilla said, walking forward. She began toying with him a bit, planting kisses and nibbles on his neck and chest. He whined and it seemed a nearly girlish sound. 

 

"Do you know...how to go down on a lady?" Camilla said, as she continued to plant her little kisses. 

 

"U-Uh huh. I think so." Yew said.

 

"How about you give that a try then." Camilla said. He went to his knees just about instantly and began to eat her out. He was so enthusiastic about it and gentle and just masterful. Camilla was moaning in ecstasy within moments and orgasmed a lot quicker then she thought possible. Yew enjoyed pleasing her. It gave him pleasure too, and he touched himself as he did so. Camilla tasted good.

 

"Thank you. That was amazing. You...really are quite experienced at that. Aren't you." Camilla said, as he took his mouth reluctantly from her crotch. He nodded. Yet again it was on instinct. He knew it was true. He'd done that to quite a lot of women, quite a lot of times. 

 

"So...I don't really want you to uh...penetrate me. Not today anyway. But...you can watch me and play with yourself, if that's alright." Camilla said. Yew nodded eagerly. Everything about this was so damn hot, he thought.

 

So she danced for him. She paid extra attention to her hips and bottom, knowing that those were the parts of her he most desired. All the while Yew was stroking his little cock, admiring how fucking amazing her body was. At last he came into his hand. Camilla walked over, swaying her hips, feeling like the sexiest gods damn thing on the planet and gave Yew a kiss on the mouth.

 

"You did very well sweetie." Camilla said.

 

"Th-thank you." Yew said. 

 

"It's no problem honey. I know you're a whore. You'll give it away to just about anyone. But I like that fine. However, as long as you're in my bedroom, you take orders from me. Got it?" Camilla said. 

 

"Y-yes. Happily." Yew said. He was absolutely sincere. He couldn't recall what he had been into on earth, but this was definitely his tastes here. 

 

He slept in her arms til morning. Then they said their farewells and Yew slipped out.


	11. Chapter 11

Yew spent another couple of days in Riverwood. Creating and selling his potions and sleeping with Camilla. Through his alchemy and negotiations, he was actually able to achieve level 4 and chose a perk to increase the effectiveness of his potions and poisons, he also gained some spell slots for first level spells. However, the situation couldn't last much longer. He needed to head up to Whiterun. To figure out who exactly these travelers were who helped vanquish the dragon. One of them might be the Dragonborn.

 

"I want to head out to Whiterun." Yew said to Greta one morning during breakfast.

 

"Ok. I want to come with you. I feel like I'll be able to help people if I'm with you, which was my purpose for traveling anyway." Greta said.

 

"Ok. We should purchase some food for the road, and then swing by the Riverwood trader to make sure we have our supplies. I should say goodbye to Camilla as well." Yew said. 

 

"Ok. I'll get the food. You can go and check out the Riverwood trader. Say goodbye to Camilla." Greta said. Yew nodded and the two left. Greta noticed that Orgnar was looking at Yew oddly as he walked away. It wasn't quite that he was checking him out, though he could have been, the emotion across Orgnar's face seemed to be wistful regret.

 

Yew entered the trader. As per usual, Camilla was sitting reading a book and Lucan was behind the counter.

 

"Hello, Yew. It's so nice to see you." Camilla said standing up. Looking at his face, Camilla seemed to realize something.

 

"You're going away, aren't you?" Camilla asked.

 

"I am." Yew said.

 

"Do you know if you'll be dropping by again soon?" Camilla said.

 

"I can't be sure of anything at this time, but I would say there's a good chance. I am just going up to Whiterun to investigate the dragon attack there." Yew said.

 

"Why do you have to get involved with dragons? Isn't that a bit dangerous? Your not some kind of Archmage are you? I don't know too much about magic, but I know that much." Camilla said.

 

"That's true. But I am the only druid in the area, and my order is concerned with keeping the natural world in balance. I highly suspect the dragons don't wish to contribute to the balance, only to destroy it. I must do something. The gods, the balance, nature and everything that comprise Nirn needs my help." Yew said. Again he just seemed to know this all was true.

 

"I see. This is very important then." Camilla said.

 

"It is." Yew said.

 

"Then that just means I'll have to give you one hell of a kiss for good luck." Camilla said, and proceeded to kiss Yew quite hard. Camilla's hands strayed down to Yew's rear and she grabbed it firmly. The two kissed like they wouldn't see each other for months. Then separated.

 

"That was one hell of a kiss." Yew said. Lucan cleared his throat, to demonstrate he was still there. Yew proceded to sell a few of the non-essential potions he had brewed and grabbed a few items for the road. 

 

"Be careful on the road. Most of the guards for Whiterun hold are either in the city itself or villages like ours. The roads have likely never been less patroled." Lucan said.

 

"I'll keep that in mind." Yew said, and bid Camilla one last farewell with a peck on the lips and a slap on her butt. Then Yew left. 

 

Yew and Greta met outside the Trader and began their trek down the road to Whiterun.

 

"How long do you think it will take to get to Whiterun." Yew said.

 

"On foot...probably the rest of today and a bit of tomorrow morning." Greta said. 

 

The two took a break a bit afternoon to have something to eat. They sat down on the ground and shared a meal of bread, honigbrew mead, a bit of goat cheese and some seared slaughter fish. 

 

"How are you enjoying it here in Skyrim? I know it must be a considerable change of pace from High Rock." Greta said. 

 

"I'm getting more peace here then I've gotten in a long time. I do miss my home, certain aspects at least. But...I'm glad to be here." Yew said. And he realized that was the case for both parts of him.

 

"I'm glad to hear that." Greta said. 

 

They were just finishing up their meal when a band of armed and armored men and women came down the road. There were six of them.

 

"Look what we've got here." An argonian rasped.

 

"A couple travelers prancing through the meadows." A breton female said, taking out a knife only to file her nails with it.

 

"They look like two little princesses." A hulking brute of a nord said.

 

"We shouldn't be rude to them then. Well my ladies, what are you doing so far away from your castle?" said the man leading them. He had a bushy beard a bald head and had a great sword slung over his back. 

 

"The wilderness is ours, friends. You should be careful what you say." Yew replied.

 

"Ha. They think their hard." A roguish imperial japes.

 

"Let's slit their throat and watch the blood trickle down." Says an argonian female. 

 

"Hold. We don't have to do any of that if our friends here just hand over there gold. Then we can let them walk free." The bearded man said.

 

"If you get rid of your arms, and give us your promise that you won't hurt innocent people, we shall give you the ability to walk out of here alive." Yew said.

 

"Yes. The divines give mercy to those truly repentant. We shall do the same." Greta said.

 

The bandits looked at each other and then they began to laugh. 

 

Their weapons were drawn.

 

"Kill them." The bearded leader said.

 

"You've made a couple of mistakes." Yew said. He wasn't even facing them. He was just standing to the side with his dagger drawn.

 

"Oh? What are those?" The bearded man said.

 

"Standing so close together." Yew said. He had finished making the necessary movements for entangling with the hand they couldn't see. Suddenly all of them were grasped by strong vines keeping their legs tied together. They couldn't move and they had no choice but to try and hack at the shifting vines. a difficult task to be sure.

 

Greta went over and bashed the male argonians head in. Yew walked over to the female argonian and slit her throat.

 

"Do you give up?" Yew asked. 

 

"N-never." The bandit leader said, trying to slash the vines with his spare dagger.

 

"That's too bad. Mistake number two. Underestimating your enemy. Piercing Thorn." Yew said casting the spell and sending a thorn hurtling through the neck of the Imperial. Greta moved over to the brutish nord. A few bashes and he lay dead at her feet.

 

"Surrender?" Yew asked.

 

"Not a fucking chance, Yvete!" The bearded man yelled. The Breton girl sent flames into the vines that were entangling her. They burned and fell useless to the ground. She did the same to her leader's vines, freeing him. 

 

"Ha ha. Excellent." The man said hefting his greatsword.

 

"Weren't expecting us to have magic on our side did you bastard? I'll run you through." The leader yelled and charged at Yew. 

 

Yew supposed this would be a fair fight. He had only used one spell slot on entangle. 

 

This is what he'd been missing during those days of relative peace in Riverwood. He was glad to be back on the road.


	12. Chapter 12

Yew dodged a swing from the bandit's greatsword, then another. Then another. On the bandit leaders third strike he was able to create a nasty gash on Yew's cheek that hurt like a bitch. 

 

"Piercing Thorn." Yew said and sent a thorn into the chestplate of the attacking bandit. It penetrated the armor and hit the bandit shallowly in the chest, causing him to bleed but causing no severe damage. 

 

"You stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Son of a bitch!" The man yelled and hit Yew hard in the face with the pommel of his sword. Yew's nose was broken and bleeding. The bandit followed this up with a swing and was able to get a shallow wound on Yew's abdomen before Yew backed off. Yew was hurting badly. 

 

He had five uses of Piercing Thorn left. 1 use of vile thorns. Several other first level spells. One use of acid spray. 3 uses of spark. 2 uses of Nature's Curse

 

"Piercing Thorn." Yew said this time the thorn hit the man's breastplate further up on his chest, though on the wrong side to get his heart. It penetrated the armor and hit him with another shallow wound. 

 

"Fucking bastard!" He yelled and ran towards Yew again attempting another great cleave with his sword. This time Yew kept his cool.

 

"Piercing Thorn." Yew said and the thorn hit the man in his unprotected head. The thorn went right through his skull and stuck lodged itself so that either end of it could be seen through his head. The man fell down with hardly a death rattle. 

 

Greta had to deal with the Breton female. Who was much more agile than the bandit leader, partly because she was wielding a knife and was wearing much lighter armor, and partially because she seemed to be a trained rogue. This would have been difficult enough to contend with as Greta wasn't nearly as fast and dextrous, however, she was also using magic against here. Casting flames as she slashed and weaved past Greta's pitiful defenses. It would have been beautiful to watch if it wasn't bringing Greta nearer and nearer to death.

 

She was getting cut and slashed all up, and only her wards and oakflesh spell were keeping her from death at this point. Greta couldn't even land a hit on her.

 

"Ha ha. You know priestess, you actually are quite the beauty under those robes. It's a shame really that I have to kill you." The Breton girl, who Greta believed was called Yvette, said. She was wearing an arrogant smirk on her face as she kept moving from foot to foot, dancing her way around Greta.

 

"And you are quite a skilled fighter. If you were a servant of good, you could achieve much." Greta said.

 

"Sorry. Good is boring and it doesn't pay that well." Yvete said. 

 

"Finish me then. My only regret in this life was that I wasn't able to help Yew more. Once he gets down with your companion, he'll kill you." Greta said.

 

"I see. So you have trust in your pretty boy huh? As well as your divines. Fool. You can't trust anyone in this life." Yvette said and she bolted straight at Greta, while she had been talking she had switched her knife for a dagger and was now charging to plunge it into Greta's heart. 

 

Greta timed her block perfectly rising her mace at the last second so that it would knock the blade from Yvette's hands. Then Greta lifted the mace and hit Yvette hard in the chest knocking her back and over, though her leather armor was able to hold. Yvette was on her knees and gasping. The blow had knocked the wind out of her. It was no matter though. Greta was wounded. She just needed to take stock of the situation and adjust her strategy. 

 

Then she heard the distinctive sound of a corpse falling to the ground. Her leader was dead and Greta was healing her wounds while staring at her with a determined expression.

 

She had to withdraw. 

 

Yvette turned and ran. She had a place she could go to lick her wounds and think of a new plan. South, she had to get south to Falkreath. She'd avoid Riverwood and stay in the wilds. She could hunt for a while. Then she could hole up with a few cutpurses she knew down there. It would be fine. Everything would be fine.

 

Yew stepped forward and nocked an Arrow, he held his breath and traced the movements of the fleeing bandit. Shame about having to kill her. She was an attractive girl and had a great bum, but she couldn't be allowed to escape. He didn't want any innocent deaths on his conscience. He was just about to loose when suddenly a flash appeared in his mind. A memory. He could see that woman's face, illuminated by torchlight, smiling at him. 

 

His arrow loosed and it went arching into the distance. It struck a tree that Yvette had passed about 6 seconds earlier. Yvette escaped.

 

"Yew...Yew what's wrong?" Greta said. Yew's face was pale, like he had seen a ghost.

 

"That woman...I think I know her." Yew said. 

 

"H-How?" Greta asked. What were the chances that someone he knew was in a bandit gang that waylaid them. Hadn't he just been on a trip to Helgen? Yew had told her that he really lived in a Druid's den leagues away from Riverwood, and that he hadn't been in Skyrim for too long. 

 

 

"I-I'm not sure. From High Rock, I think." Yew said. He seemed distressed and in deep thought.

 

"You can't recall?" Greta said.

 

"No...I can not." Yew said. 

 

"It's fine if you can't remember." Greta said.

 

"No. It's not." Yew said. Had she been important to him? Had she been an enemy? A friend? A lover? A relative? Yew just couldn't tell. 

 

"Here. Let me heal your wounds." Greta said.

 

"No. It's a waste of magicka. I've got it." Yew said, uncorking one of his health potions and drinking it. Greta thought it might be wiser to save potions then her magicka but he seemed still distressed so she didn't want to get on his case. 

 

Health potions tasted pretty good actually, and the process of healing felt just as good as by any other magical method. He gulped it all down and wiped the stray drops from his face. 

 

"Let's get going. That put us back a bit." Yew said and marched on. Greta nodded and followed. 

 

The journey to Whiterun continued. Only now Yew was brooding. He had an entire life that he could not recall, and another life that was missing a name. He had to shake it off though. He'd like to tame a familiar before he arrived in Whiterun, and the last thing he wanted was to alienate Greta. So he'd have to work to break the ice that had formed between them after their battle with the bandits. And he was damn horny. He'd need to relieve that once they got to Whiterun. There was a brothel there that Lucan frequented, if he couldn't seduce someone fast enough.

 

Then he'd have to begin his investigation, and frankly, he was scared of going down that rabbit hole. But he'd be likely doomed regardless if he did nothing. 

 

So, plenty of thoughts to burden him with as he made his mostly silent march to Whiterun.


	13. Chapter 13

It was Greta that finally broke the silence

 

"So...you are a man correct?" Greta asked. Yew laughed.

 

"I-I meant no offense." Greta said.

 

"No it's fine. I am indeed a man." Yew said.

 

"It's just...you also seem to have such feminine qualities as well. I've never really met anyone like you before." Greta said.

 

"Yes. I suppose I do. Still I feel like a man, I'm just a bit more feminine then most I suppose." Yew said. He hadn't really been like that in his past life on earth...well maybe a bit but nothing so drastic. It didn't feel wrong or bad, just different.?

 

 

"Do you have a problem with that?" He asked with genuine curiosity.

 

"No. I believe the divines make everyone the way they are for a reason. I am just...curious." Greta said.

 

"Ok. You can as me whatever you want then. I know that you do not mean any ill will by your questions." Yew said.

 

"Then I will ask you instead of making any assumptions." Greta said.

 

"That is what I'd prefer." Yew said. 

 

As they continued to head to Whiterun, they ran into an unusual sight. A wolf was feeding on a stag in the middle of the road.

 

 

"Is there so little traffic on this road that this is another part of the wild to them?" Yew asked.

 

"I'm not sure. There very well could be. Especially with the recent dragon attack." Greta said. Yew was already walking closer to the wolf. The Wolf had stopped eating and had looked up. It was now staring right into Yew's eyes. Yew didn't feel afraid though. Not at all. In fact, he felt like he had understood the wolf. 

 

"Your alone in an unfamiliar place aren't you?" Yew asked. He got a few steps closer.

 

"That means you're just like me." Yew said. A bit closer.

 

"Would you like to be my familiar?" Yew asked, reaching out his hand. The wolf trotted up to Yew's outstretched hand and Yew patted him on the head. A connection was formed in an instant. Suddenly Yew felt like the wolf was somewhat apart of him. Like all the struggles of the wolf was his own and vice versa. In his mind, a pop up notification appeared saying , "Yew Obtained a level 3 wolf." He could see the Wolf's stats. He would be useful enough in a fight, and could be a pretty good scout. At the very least he would be a way to avoid getting in close during combat, which he was ill-suited for. 

 

"Did you...make friends with that wolf?" Greta said, blinking.

 

"Yes. It's part of a druid's skill set. He's my familiar now." Yew said.

 

"Druids...are kinda amazing aren't they?" Greta said. Yew laughed.

 

"Let's keep going. Still got a ways to go." Yew said, and both Greta and his new companion followed after him.

 

The journey continued much the same. With Yew occasionally making short detours to collect alchemical ingredients. They stopped for a quick dinner then continued on until it grew too dark for them to make progress. The three of them, Greta, Yew, and his wolf, took turns keeping watch. 

 

When Yew first rested his eyes, he got a pop up telling him about his skill changes. Druidism leveled up significantly, partly from the fighting he had done that day, but mostly because of making that wolf his companion. As such he was fairly close to reaching level 5. 

 

The night went by smoothly. In the morning, they had breakfast and made it to town at around noon.

 

Whiterun was big. Not huge like most cities back home in Earth, but quite substantial anyway. From what Greta had told Yew, it had three major districts and a couple of outliers. The first thing they saw was a blacksmithy, a tanned woman was there working on a blade. She was strong with a voluptuous and toned body that Yew found quite pleasing to look at. 

 

Yew headed over to her.

 

"Hello miss. We are new to the city and we were wondering if you could give us any relevant information about the travelers who fought against the Dragon that attacked here." Yew asked.

 

"Hm. Could be." The blacksmith said.

 

"I don't mean the travelers any harm. I simply would like to speak with them." Yew said. As soon as the words left his mouth he realized that's exactly what someone who meant them harm would say.

 

"Ah huh. Well, I'm afraid I can't tell you anything." The blacksmith said.

 

"Listien...I'm a member of the Druid Order from High Rock. My mission here is to figure out what's behind the dragons and stop them. All I wish to do is preserve the natural order. Keep the balance." Yew said.

 

"I don't know anything about a Druid order." The blacksmith said.

 

"Huh. Well my name is Yew Fey, if you will trust that much. What is your name?" Yew asked.

 

"Adrienne Avenicci." The blacksmith said.

 

"Adrienne Avenicci. Lovely name." Yew said. 

 

"Don't know how high of praise that is, coming from someone with the name of a tree." Adrienne said. 

 

"I don't think I've made a very good first impression on you." Yew said.

 

"No. You haven't" Adrienne said.

 

"Well, I hope to one day, earn some measure of your trust." Yew said.

 

"Good luck." Adrienne said. Yew stepped away.

 

"Were you able to get anything out of her?" Greta asked.

 

"No. I don't think she likes me very much. And she certainly doesn't trust me." Yew said.

 

"Ah. Maybe we should try going to an inn? The Bannered Mare is a good place." Greta said.

 

"That sounds excellent. I could at least get some fresh food and drink." Yew said. 

 

With that, they began their journey through the city. The streets were a lot less busy then Yew expected from a city this size. 

 

"There's not as many people as usual." Greta said.

 

"Because of the war?" Yew said.

 

"Probably in part but...it looks like the trade has dried up a bit. The roads were really shut down. I think it's because of the dragons." Greta said.

 

"That makes sense. Still there could be other factors. I'm curious to see what kind of information we can find out at this Bannered Mare." Yew said.

 

Most of the people at the inn were Nords, as Yew would naturally expect. That was the dominant race of this land called Skyrim it appeared. The innkeeper was a woman that looked to be in her late 40's, she was fairly attractive to Yew's eyes. Though others at the Bannered Mare caught his eye more.

 

"Hello there. I'd like some of your mead, as well as beef, bread and some goat cheese." Yew said as he sat along the bar.

 

"Alright. What about you lovely girl?" The innkeeper asked Greta.

 

"H-Hualda don't you recognize me?" Greta said.

 

"Greta? I'm sorry. I didn't expect to see you here for quite some time. I'm glad you seem to be doing well." Hualda said, though from the glances Hualda was giving Greta, Yew suspected she would rather be seeing her in a more intimate setting.

 

"Ah ha. Yes. I've been traveling with Yew here for a bit." Greta said. Hualda looked a bit disappointed about that.

 

"We have been traveling together indeed. We were both quite curious about the dragon attack and we wanted to know if you had any information." Yew asked.

 

"Oh well, I'd be pleased to tell you. It's the story of our newest Thane after all. Just let me get you your food and drinks and I'll tell you all about it." Hualda said.

 

Yew and Greta looked at each other. They weren't expecting it to be quite that easy.

 

Their food and drinks arrived fairly quickly, along with a wink from Hualda towards Greta. Greta again blushed, but Yew noticed she didn't seem to be displeased by the attention, quite the opposite in fact. Yew was a bit envious of them, a bit more of Hualda then Greta, but he also rooted for them. Greta deserved some happiness, and Hualda seemed a good enough woman to give it to her.

 

"So what's this about a new Thane?" Yew asked. Greta had explained what exactly a Thane was in Skyrim politics. High Rock was organized differently, so she didn't think anything of his initial confusion. Yew would need to acquaint himself with as much as he could learn about this land as soon as possible. He wondered if there were any libraries around here.

 

"Oh yes. Well, it started when this Redguard woman came into town. Lovely girl. Beautiful really. She'd come from Helgen and had quite the story to tell about dragons." Hualda said.

 

"Yes. I observed the incident. I wasn't aware there had been any survivors." Yew said.

 

"Well, she was. At least she had so and I have no reason not to believe her. Especially considering what she did for all of us." Hualda said.

 

"She fought the dragon right?" Greta said.

 

"Yes. She had help, but she was the one who dealt the fatal blow. Rumor has it she was able to absorb the soul of the dragon after she killed it." Hualda said. Yew inhaled sharply.

 

"Really?" Yew asked.

 

"Yeah. Many say she is a Dragonborn of old come again. Maybe she is and maybe she isn't, but she's a hero in my book." Hualda said.

 

Dragonborn of old come again? Did that make her some sort of chosen hero?

 

Was she the hero whose fate Yew would play a part in? That old Wizard had told him something about that. And his journal seemed to imply the same. 

 

"Do you know where she is? I would like to talk to the hero. My order is interested in recording the deeds of such heroes." Yew said. Which was plausible enough and Yew felt like it was true, though of course, that wasn't his true reason for needing to meet her.

 

"Your Order?" Hualda said.

 

"Yes. I am a part of the Druidic Order, descendants of the Druids of Galen. Our mission is to preserve the wilds, maintain the balance between civilization and nature, maintain the natural balance and destroy those who would defile it. As one of our subgoals, we also like to preserve knowledge. We believe time tends to repeat, and thus having insight into the past means we can predict the future." Yew said.

 

"All right. She was heading out to collect a bounty on a nearby gang of bandits. If you stick around here you should be able to meet her. If not I'll give her a heads up you were looking for her when she stops in." Hualda said.

 

"That sounds excellent. Thank you." Yew said, and went back to his food.


	14. Chapter 14

The duo spent the rest of the day exploring. First, they went to Arcadia's Cauldron.

"Mind if I use your Alchemy table? I will, of course, use my own ingredients, and can offer some of my potions to you at a reasonable price." Yew said.

"Hm. That's fine. It's always good to observe someone practicing the alchemical arts. A lot of people use different methods to achieve subtly different results. Alchemy is as much an art as a science." Arcadia said.

"Well, I'll show you how I do it." Yew said. He spent a bit of time making a few potions and talking shop with Arcadia. Even managing to sell a couple.

"I hope to see you around. Not too many people in this city truly appreciate Alchemy. Besides what the potions can do for them of course." Arcadia said.

"Yes. It's good to discuss things with a fellow traveler. And trade options with them. I shall most certainly see you later." Yew said with a bit of a bow. Then Yew and Greta left.

Next was Belathor's general goods.

"Another Breton huh? I suspect you're from High Rock? Not one of those damn Reacherman savages." Belethor said. Yey involuntarily twitched at the use of the term "savage" but he was able to remain cool. Different world, different standards.

"I am indeed from High Rock." Yew said.

"Hm...you wouldn't happen to be one of those uh...Druids would you?" Belethor asked.

"Correct again." Yew said.

"Huh. I've heard a couple come to preach in town. Occasionally they would trade or negotiate on behalf of the wild back in High Rock. Wasn't expecting to find you here, thought the order pretty much stayed in High Rock." Belethor said.

"We journey elsewhere on occasion. After all, our objectives are the preservation of the world. Not just High Rock." Yew said.

"Ha. Of course. Anyway, feel free to check out my wares. I've got a lot on offer." Belethor said. Yew and Greta looked it over, but ultimatly purchased only a couple of books.

They also spent some time in the bustling marketplace. Two traders, in particular, caught Yew's eye.

The first was Ysolda. She was a very attractive woman. Lean but with generous curves distributed the way Yew liked. So he decided to speak with her, while Greta was examing some other merchant's wares.

"Hello, beautiful." Yew said.

"Hey yourself stranger. My names Ysolda, merchant extraordinaire. What's yours?" Ysolda asked.

"Yew Fey, of the Druids guild." Yew said.

"Oh. You must be a traveler then. I don't think I've heard of any Druid's guild. What is this guild?" Ysolda said.

"It's an order of mages dedicated to safeguarding the wilds, and keeping the balance between nature and civilization, as well as preserving nature's internal balance. We also serve a similar function as most other Mage's guilds." Yew said.

"Huh, that's quite fascinating. I suppose that means your quite the seasoned traveler." Ysolda said, she was looking Yew up and down, clearly attracted to the androgynous Breton.

"Yes. I've traveled all around High Rock. And from High Rock to here." Yew said.

"Hm. And your also a skilled magic user." Ysolda said.

"There are many in my order more powerful. But I can manage myself in a fight." Yew said.

"Huh. Then there might be something you could do for me. A quest a brave adventurer like you might undertake." Ysolda said.

"Hm. I might. What is it you'd like me to do." Yew said.

"I require a mammoth tusk. It is essential for a...client I'm working with. Bring me that and I can pay you a fair sum for your work, and you'll earn my gratitude." Ysolda said.

"Ok. I think I can do that. Though it might take a while." Yew said.

"That's fine. It's not that urgent but...please get it to me when you can." Ysolda said.

"I will." Yew said. In his mind, a pop up notification appeared. It gave the following information:

Ysolda's Request

Summary: Find a mammoth tusk for Ysolda and return it to her.

Rewards: ? Gold

? EXP

Possibility to romance Ysolda

This was Yew's first quest notification. And it certainly gave him some useful information.

Yew bid farewell to Ysolda and Yew and Greta continued to walk about the marketplace where Yew found his second interesting woman. Carlotta Valentia.

"A new traveler huh? Please don't proposition me. I have enough suitors as it is." Carlotta said warily. She was stunningly beautiful, so Yew could very much understand why.

"If you don't desire it, then I have no desire to. I am only interested in women who are interested in me." Yew said. As much as he savored the idea of laying with her, he didn't want to be the kind of guy who forces their advances on people who don't desire it.

"Thank you. You seem different from other men. Almost...womanly." Carlotta said.

"Of that, I have been told." Yew said.

"Could you maybe help me out a bit? This bard named Mikeal keeps harassing me. Talking about how he will conquer me like a nord conquers any harsh beast. If you could find a way to stop him, I'd be very grateful." Carlotta said.

"I'd be happy too." Yew said.

"Thank you. I'm not expecting much, the man's a stubborn fool. But even an attempt would be nice." Carlotta said.

"We'll try our best." Greta said.

Another notification in his mind.

Carlotta's Request

Summary: Convince Mikeal that he should stop pursuing Carlotta.

Rewards: ? Gold

? EXP

Carlotta's Gratitude

Improved realtions with Carlotta

Huh. That was interesting. Yew wondered if he would ever get more specific numbers for the gold and exp. If there was perhaps some way of improving his interface. Still he was happy to help Carlotta solve her problems. Putting a smile on this weary woman's face would be payment enough. Everything else was just gravy.

They bid farewell to Carlotta and ended up back in the Bannered Mare, shortly thereafter. They had dinner and set to drinking and waiting. As the night grew on and everyone became more and more intoxicated things began to change. Hualda sat in the stool next to Greta, patting her on the bum and whispering sweet nothings as Greta laid her head on Hualda's breast.

Yew began looking around for potential targets. He needed to find someone down for a one night stand. His druidic lust was insatiable and the drinking hadn't done much to lower it. Mikeal sat around strumming his lute. He wasn't half bad to look at, but he doubted he would be able to talk him into bed. He saw a large Nordic mercenary clad in iron armor. He was quite attractive and Yew couldn't help but wonder if the weapon in his pants was as big as the weapon strapped to his back.

Finally sitting in the corner was an androgynous, amazon of a woman wearing iron armor. Her name was Uthgerd, Hualda and Greta had told him that. She was powerful looking and had her own rough kind of appeal.

Yew had to make his choice and he chose the mercenary. He felt like he had his best chances with him, and he couldn't resist his charms.

"Hail warrior." Yew said, striding up to the mercenary. Yew saw the warrior was eying up Yew's swaying hips.

"Hail. Your a pretty little thing aren't you." The man said, his voice deep but smooth.

"You are yourself, for a sellsword. Seem like the kind of guy who'd be covered in scars." Yew said.

"Warriors covered in scars are warriors who've failed." The man said.

"Oh, so you haven't ever failed?" Yew said.

"Not in battle." He replied.

"Oh. Then where have you failed?" Yew said.

"Many places. In love especially." He said.

"If you want, then I could comfort you from your losses." Yew said.

"Careful. You don't want to make promises you don't intend on fulfilling." The man said.

"I very much intend on fulfilling them." Yew said. The man slapped Yew on the bottom, and Yew gasped slightly.

"Then follow me upstairs." The man said. And up he walked. Yew followed quickly behind him. Closing the door as he entered.

The man stripped off his armor quite quickly. It was clear this man had done such many times before. Yew had to gasp at his naked form. He had an exceptional body. Lean yet muscular and Hollywood level good looks. His cock was impressive, rock hard and probably about 7 inches, and very well shaped. Yew was practically salivating.

"Clothes off. You don't want me to rip them from you." He said, his blue eyes piercing through Yew. He did as was requested. All the while the mercenary was staring at him.

"Good." He said approvingly. Apparently, he liked what he saw. The mercenary crossed the room and began kissing Yew hard and grabbing his backside forcefully. Yew felt the press of the Mercs cock in his belly. Then he pulled away.

"On the bed. On your knees. Arse up. I'm going to take you." The merc said.

"Yes sir." Yew said and did exactly as he told him. He wanted it, he craved his cock inside him. Soon the Merc was inside of him filling Yew deeply. The merc seemed to know exactly how hard Yew liked it. Yew enjoyed every minute of it, cumming as soon as he felt the merc ejaculate inside him.

The Merc removed himself.

"That was good. You are exceptional." The merc said.

"So are you." Yew responded.

"How much do I owe you." The merc said.

"You owe me nothing. I gave myself freely." Yew said.

"That is...convenient. I've rarely stumbled across such conveniences." The man said.

"I am a druid. My lusts shape me." Yew said.

"Huh." The man said. There was silence as they recovered from their sex.

"You do owe me one thing." Yew said.

"What." He responded in a flat tone.

"Your name." Yew said.

"...Ivan." He said.

The two lay apart for some time and fell into an uncomfortable sleep.

Downstairs, Greta was still getting along well with Hualda. She felt so comforted in her embrace, and she was intoxicated enough that she didn't mind any looks she might be getting.

"Would you like to come back to my room, love?" Hualda whispered. Greta nodded.

"Then let's go. Cmon." Hualda said and she took the young woman into her room. When Greta was in the room and sitting down on Hualda's bed, she sobered up pretty quickly.

"I...I don't...I-I'm not...I can't..." Greta said.

"Sh, love. I know that you have struggled with your desires. To me and other women. But it is fine. Dibella and Mara accept all love, regardless of gender." Hualda said.

"I-I know." Greta said. Hualda was beautiful, and Greta wanted her. But a wave of guilt hit her. She was afaid of being selfish. Afraid of hurting someone.

"Give in honey. I'll be kind to you. Gentle. I'll show you what you've been missing." Hualda went over to her and gave Greta a kiss. Greta kissed back a bit, but then stopped. There was still resistance in her.

"I-I'm sorry. I'm not ready. I...I can't." Greta said.

"I understand love." Hualda said with a sigh. Greta was hurting. She understood why, but it was still so difficult to see someone suffer like that.

"I...I'll go stay in my room." Greta said.

"You go do that. Sleep well." Hualda said.

Greta sobbed in her bed. Hating herself and hating her weakness.


	15. Chapter 15

Yew's dreams, of course, revealed some status screens. His Speech skill had leveled up and he was only a few dozen points or so from getting to level 5.

Yew woke up to the sounds of his lover getting dressed. It wasn't a bad sight to wake up to, seeing Ivan's firm ass as he put on his leggings.

"You heading out?" Yew asked.

"Yeah. I have a contract." Ivan said.

"Well...good luck." Yew said.

"I don't rely on such things." Ivan said.

"You sure? I could give you a kiss or a token for good luck?" Yew said teasingly.

"Tokens are for knights." Ivan said. And he left with arms and armor fully equipped.

Yew headed downstairs after Ivan left. He joined Greta, who seemed slightly distant. Yew was slightly concerned about that but Greta had been drinking a lot so Yew didn't make too much of it.

Then he noticed that Hualda seemed slightly awkward. He would have to talk to Greta about that a bit later.

"What are you two going to be up to today?" Hualda asked.

"Well I-" Yew and Greta both said at the same time. Then they paused and looked at each other. Yew was about to take over and say that they were going to see more of the city, when the door to the inn opened.

It was a woman in robes similar to Greta's. Robes of the priesthood of Kyrenath. She was pretty attractive actually, and lustful thoughts began filling Yew's mind again.

"Greta dear. I heard you were back in town. It is good to see you." The woman said.

"Danica? It's good to see you as well. How has the temple been?" Greta said.

"Suffering somewhat from the war. However, we are making due." Danica said.

Yew took this opportunity to seek out Mikeal. He had to complete his quest after all.

"Your Mikeal right?" Yew said.

"Yes, indeed I am. And your that traveler. I hear you've been going all around town claiming to be a druid?" Mikeal said.

"I've been claiming that because it's true." Yew said.

"I knew a druid at the Bard's College in Solitude. Yes...you do have the robes of the order, at least for a neophyte, but I don't see a sickle or any of the other holy symbols." Mikheal said.

"Until recently I have been traveling as light as I can and with a desire to keep my allegiance to my order secret. With this dragon attack, I find no reason not to advertise my presence as a druid." Yew said.

"I see." Mikheal said.

"I wanted to talk to you about something much different though." Yew said.

"Oh?" Mikheal said.

"Carlotta. You should leave her alone." Yew said.

"Carlotta...yes. She is a rare beauty. Why would I stop attempting my seduction? I feel like I'm inching ever closer." Mikheal said.

"Because she wants you to stop." Yew said.

"I'm not sure I believe that. Much as she might protest it, I believe she is interested in me." Mikheal said.

"What if...you bedded me instead? I'd be down for it." Yew said, looking Mikheal up and down, and stroking his knee. Mikheal pushed his hand off.

"I don't bed with boys. Even pretty ones." Mikheal said.

"Sure I can't talk you into it?" Yew asked.

"Nope." Mikheal said.

"Fine then. But now imagine if I continued pressing the point, and started bragging to everyone within hearing distance that I'm close to bedding you." Yew said. Mikheal looked thoughtful, gave Yew a strange look and went back to thinking.

"Your right. I suppose I was wrong. You can tell Carlotta I won't pursue her. I was getting bored of trying anyway. Just...if your thinking of pursuing her yourself...a word to the wise. She's been a bit broken when it comes to men. Her old lover abandoned her and her child." Mikheal said.

"Good to know." Yew said. He felt a rush of power. He was certain he had leveled up, either just in speech or as part of his general level or both.

"Yew...I'm going to head off with Danica. I want to talk to her alone for a bit." Greta said.

"Ok. I'll go explore a bit around town then." Yew said.

"Sounds good. I'll meet up with you soon." Greta said. With that Greta and Danica left. Shortly thereafter Yew headed out himself to tell Carlotta and complete his quest.

"I've convinced Mikhael to abandon his seduction efforts. You won't need to worry about him anymore." Yew said.

"Well, I'll believe it when I see it. But still...thanks for talking to him. Here's something for your trouble." Carlotta said, handing some gold to Yew. He also felt another rush of power, which Yew realized was the experience points. He also was glad for the smile on Carlotta's face.

Greta was with Danica, near the altar of Kynereath speaking in hushed tones.

"Those desires...have you accepted them." Danica said.

"I...I have not brought myself to fully accept them." Greta said.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Though I understand how it is difficult to, considering your past." Danica said sympathetically.

"Yes..." Greta said.

"That man you are traveling with..." Danica said.

"He has been good for me, I think. It's been nice traveling with someone. Working together with someone." Greta said.

"I see. You know...that man is a druid." Danica said.

"Yes. He is." Greta said. She was slightly confused at why she was bringing that up.

"He could be quite useful to the temple." Danica said.

"I see...but he has another mission. He wants to investigate the dragons." Greta said.

"That is a worthy cause. However, this temple is weak. You are weak. He is weak. In order to complete your mission, you need to get stronger. In order for this temple to protect the city, we need it to be strengthened. Please, we can help each other." Danica said, laying a hand on Greta's shoulder. Greta felt an involuntary shiver of desire.

"I...I'll ask him." Greta said.

"Thanks. That's all I ask of you." Danica said and removed her hand.

Yew spent some time talking with Carlotta. She was a charming, intelligent and funny woman, though hard in places from her rough life.

"You are very compassionate and quite a lovely person, or at least seem to be." Carlotta admitted.

"I try." Yew said.

"Well, you do well. I would like to talk to you and see you for as long as you are in town." Carlotta said.

"Then I'll catch you when I can." Yew said. They said their farewells and Yew went to Arcadia's cauldron to practice some alchemy and talk with Arcadia. He sold off some of his newly made potions and kept the rest. Then he made his way back to the Bannered Mare to get some lunch.

He was tucking into his lunch, minding his own business when he suddenly felt a slap on his butt. He turned around and saw that amazon of the woman who spent nearly all of her time at this inn. Uthgerd.

"Hello, there cutie." Uthgerd said as she eyed him.

"H-Hello there." Yew said, eyeing her back. She really was quite attractive in a distinctive, show!Brienne of Tarth sort of way.

"I noticed you looking my way last night. It's nice to meet a man who can appreciate a strong woman. Particularly one so lovely as you." Brienne said.

"I certainly can. You look quite strong and attractive. I'd very much like to see your body underneath that plate." Yew said.

That was when Greta came in.

"U-Uh hello Yew. I hate to interrupt but..." Greta said, quickly figuring out the situation.

"No need to apologize." Uthgerd said, and her gaze fell on Greta with the same intense lust.

"What is it Greta?" Yew asked.

"I...I wanted to discuss something with you. Priestess Danica has offered us a quest." Greta said.

"I'd like to hear about it." Yew said.

"A quest? I'm sorry to intrude but I am a warrior as dedicated to Kynereath as any. I'd be pleased to assist you." Uthgerd said. Yew looked at Greta.

"A skilled warrior would be helpful to have aid us in combat." Yew said. The two of them could really use a tank, and she seemed like she could provide that.

"I..I'm ok with that." Greta said.

"Ok then." Yew said, getting up.

"Let's go see Danica." Yew concluded.


	16. Chapter 16

The trio and Yew's wolf made their way to the Temple Of Kynereath. Yew was vaguely aware that his order worshiped a version of Kynereath. However, he wasn't completely aware of how his order practiced that faith and how it differed from the worship of the deity in Skyrim. He wished he had been able to brush up on this information before going to the temple, but until he did he would have to just wing it and hope he would be fine.

 

 

Arriving in the temple, Yew noticed that Danica was fairly attractive. Still, he had to maintain his composure, much as his druidic lust pushed him to try and fuck anyone he found remotely attractive.

 

"Hello, it is good to meet a member of your order. We may have different practices, but we have similar causes." Danica said.

 

"Yes. I believe so. What aid do you need?" Yew asked.

 

"The Gildergreen is dead. It needs to be revitalized in order to bring back Kynereath's grace and attract pilgrims." Danica said.

 

"Ok. What do you want me to do about that?" Yew asked.

 

"I need you to gather some sap from the Eldergleam tree. A holy tree of the faith. This will revitalize it." Danica said. 

 

"How will I do that? Surely such a tree would have protections? It couldn't be harvested so easily." Yew asked. He had misgivings about this. It didn't seem conducive to proper worship of the nature goddess. However, it was something he had to see about when he got to the Eldergleam Tree. He felt he'd have to here it out.

 

"Yes. You will have to secure a knife called Nettlebane. It was a holy artifact that was taken by a group of Hagravens long ago. This circle of Hagrevens is believed to nest in the shadow of the throat of the world, near Helgen. I can mark it on your map." Danica said. Yew brought out his map and Danica marked the approximate location.

 

"I'll do what I can." Yew said.

 

"I will as well." Greta said.

 

"Don't worry, you two will have me watching your backs." Uthgerd said.

 

"I thank you. All of you." Danica said.

 

The three said their farewells and left the temple. Yew examined his mental quest log.

 

Find Nettlebane

Rewards: ??? Gold

??? Experience

Nettlebane

Gratitude and Trust from Danica

 

"So...what are we going to do?" Greta said.

 

"The priority remains the same. We need to meet this new Thane of Whiterun, just in case she leaves town, we can't do this quest until we meet her." Yew said.

 

"You're looking for the new Thane of Whiterun?" Uthgerd asked.

 

"Yes. I am on a mission on behalf of my order to observe this dragon awakening. And she was one of the people who slew a dragon. In fact, there are rumors of her being "Dragonborn" I need to glean information from her and confirm or deny those claims." Yew said.

 

"I had a drink with her, and with her Housecarl Lydia. She beat me in a fistfight. She wasn't as strong as me, but a lot quicker and was pretty good at striking." Uthgerd said.

 

"Huh. Alright. Do you know where she might return when she does come back from her adventuring?" Yew said.

 

"Not sure. But she seemed intent on making her fortune. She wanted to buy a home here, set it up as a "homebase". The way she was acting was a bit strange." Uthgerd said.

 

"How so?" Greta asked.

 

"She was acting a bit...distant during much of the conversation. Like she was seeing or sensing something I wasn't. Didn't seem to be mad though. She seemed almost like a Wizard. Like she knew more then I could possibly know." Uthgerd said.

 

"Was she? A magic user?" Yew asked.

 

"Not sure. I only fought her in a brawl. She didn't sling any spells that I could see. Offensive or otherwise." Uthgerd said.

 

This gave Yew pause. Could she be...like him? A drop in from earth or somewhere else? Maybe that was what she was "sensing?" some pop-up notifications like the kind he got. 

 

"Good to know. Let's check back in at the Bannered Mare briefly. Just in case she's arrived or anyone's heard anything." Yew said.

 

His companions agreed and they checked on the inn. Unfortunately nothing had much changed since they last went in. Greta got herself some lunch and Yew discussed a bit about his journey and background with Uthgerd. 

 

"Seems like you've had a lot of adventures." Uthgerd said.

 

"Yeah. Much of my life though...it's foggy to me. And I'm not entirely sure why." Yew said. Which was the truth. After all, he should have gotten all of Yew's memories or none of them after being placed in his body. Not this blurry, incomplete, set and a small summary of the facts of his life. 

 

"That's odd. Do you think you might have been a victim to some sort of a spell or curse? One which you can't remember taking place or which was cast on you from a distance?" Uthgerd said.

 

"That...does make a lot of sense. I hadn't considered that before." Yew said. Perhaps that's why. And he just so happened to be put in this amnesiac druid's mind. Yew did write some notes in his journal before this, as well as seemed to enchant his map. 

 

The day wound on. Greta and Uthgerd took Yew sightseeing to different parts of the city. He was beginning to figure out the general lay of the land. The one place he hadn't visited was the Castle that stood above the city, housing Jarl Balgruuf.

 

 

They returned back around dinner time. Ivan walked in. His armor bloodstained. 

 

"You've been in battle. I hope you didn't do anything stupid." Hualda said. She had her hand under the counter. Most likely there was a dagger there. Likely if Ivan intended her harm, that dagger would do little good.

 

"I killed an outlaw. That's no crime. Though mayhaps it will be one day." Ivan said, as he took a seat at a table. He took off his helmet as he sat. 

 

"I'll need mead. Grab me a goat leg and a steak too." Ivan said. 

 

"Alright then." Hualda said. 

 

They ate dinner under a tense atmosphere. Ivan ate fairly quickly, then he headed to his room. 

 

Yew spent some of the evenings alone in his room examining his equipment. His robes gave him three free cantrip level spell slots. His dagger was unenchanted and iron, and was likely going to be pretty useless soon. His bow was a hunting bow, and was also going to probably become rapidly less useful. He had a good amount of arrows, though he wondered if there were better quality arrows then iron in this world. He had a few low-level poisons and a variety of options. Some were for healing the body, others could be used to grant Greta more Magicka in a pinch or increase someone's stamina. There were also a few utility potions, often more useful for everyday life than that of the adventurer. They could be useful but they were also expandable if he needed quick gold. 

 

He also had a staff and a spell tome he had discovered in the Barrows. He had no idea how to use a staff or what it might do or how it would interact with his druidic magic as nothing about this staff seemed druidic in nature. The spell tome was in a text he couldn't understand and he couldn't identify the purpose of that either. He supposed he'd have to see someone knowledgeable in magic. He definitly wanted to do that before he next left town. 

 

He looked at his Druidic Grimoire and found more information appearing on the pages. That of the worship practices of the Druids. Kyne, Hircine, Y'ffre, and Namira. It was only a brief summary of the worship of the gods and the theology of the Druidic order but with just that much memories of this knowledge and more came back to him. Yew felt his faith in those gods and in the teachings of his order return to him with swiftness. He found himself in prayer, a practice he had neglected since he had arrived. His reverence of nature was deeper now, more complete.

 

His purpose seemed clearer now. 

 

His wolf gazed at him, seeming to see right through him.

 

He fell asleep eager to see his level up screen. 

 

First his general level up. He received a few more cantrip slots. As well as a couple more first level spell slots. He also could pick another perk. He quickly went over the perks he had:

 

Avenger: Increases the amount of damage done by offensive druidic spells. Druidism.

 

Seducer: Increased sexual appeal. Speech

 

Alchemy Mastery: Increases the potency of created potions and poisons.

 

He had been using Archery a lot, so Yew decided to pick up Bow Mastery, a perk which increased all damage dealt with a bow. He confirmed his selection and fell into a deep sleep.


	17. Chapter 17

She thrust her sword deep into the belly of her foe, and felt the hotblood spill onto her hand. The bandit twitched. She hesitated momentarily before withdrawing her sword. Then she placed it back in her scabbard.

 

"Your blade work is impressive." Her companion said.

 

"I know. You've told me that before." She said. 

 

"Yet I remain impressed. I wouldn't expect such from a bard." Her companion replied.

 

"Really? A wondering bard often has to learn to ply a blade as well as a lyre, in order to get by in such a dangerous world. Surely you have skalds and the like here?" The bard asked.

 

"Yes. Mayhaps more in the old days. Most now though are effete minstrels who know little and less of how to get by outside inns and wine sinks. They have more skill than the average person mayhaps, but not anything like yours." The nord woman said.

 

"You know you really don't have to flatter me Freya. You only have to ask and I'd lay with you." The bard said. She was coming a bit out of her battle fugue. 

 

"Would love to. Sadly I have a code against fucking bards." Freya said. The Bard examined her companion closely, not for the first time. She was quite a bit taller than her and had an Amazonian physique. Freya had feminine features, with just a bit of an edge. She looked as badass as she was hot, like some kind of valkyrie. 

 

"Well, we will see how long that keeps." The bard said. She began to look over the camp. It was a destroyed mess now. Being wrecked by the fury of combat and the spells the bard had cast. There probably wasn't much that was salvageable, but she decided to toss it over for Loot anyway. She found a couple of spell scrolls, which made some sense as there had been a mage slinging spells. She also found some gold and a few potions. 

 

"I think that's all. Let's head back to Whiterun." The Bard said.

 

"Sounds like a plan. We've got coin to spend." Freya said. 

 

The two began their journey back to Whiterun. 

 

 

Yew found himself in a temple. He wasn't sure how he knew it was a temple, it had that feel, but certainly, it could be something else, he just knew that it was. It was a marble structure, fairly small, but with much-dedicated artisanry and masonry put into it. As he looked around he saw various symbols that were familiar. Triskeles, spirals and knots, Celtic crosses, though maybe here they were Breton. He also noticed alters to Kyne and Namira and Y'ffre and Hircine below small statues depicting them. He was in a place both wholly familiar and wholly alien, and he felt the warmth that signified his connection to these strange gods. 

 

"You've done well my apprentice." Said a woman's voice. She was standing a bit away from him, near the alters. A beautiful Breton woman probably in her thirties, She was wearing white druid robes, which were tailored well enough to show off her curves a bit. 

 

"Thank you." Yew said, and felt himself bow.

 

"You will have to do much more to prove yourself, but you have come a long way from when I first met you." She said. 

 

"I...I appreciate that." Yew said. 

 

"The old faith is growing again, and I expect you will become a very important member of our order in days to come. You have the talent I believe, to one day become Archdruid. That is why it's important I take great care with your training. So I hope you understand that's why I've been so cautious. It is not because I doubt your abilities." She said. 

 

"I understand." Yew said.

 

"Good." She said, placing a hand on his shoulder. It seemed intimate. Beyond that of just a simple mentor and student. But Yew felt nothing. It was like he was simply watching this all play out from his own point of view, but without the memories, thoughts and emotions he had at the time.

 

Yew woke up so suddenly he felt his surroundings to be strange, and it took him a moment to recall where he was. The Bannered Mare in Whiterun, that was right. He had a mission. He dressed, prayed and prepared himself for the day. Then he left his room. As he did, Uthgerd was ascending the stairs. 

 

"Good, you're awake. You need to come down here immediately." Uthgerd said. Something about her tone set his teeth on edge. She was in danger mode. Something had gone wrong. Yew nodded and followed her back down the stairs, so focused he was, he barely glanced at Uthgerd's large rear end. 

 

The Bannered Mare was filled with Men and a few women clad for battle. The staff were all restrained. Either tied up with rope or being threatened with weapons. A few tavern regulars, including a couple of guards, lay dead on the floor. A few with blade wounds, one with a crushed head, and another few who had burned to death, likely the work of a caster. 

 

At the center of all this, Ivan was drinking some mead. He was surrounded by three of the outsiders. A scarred and short Breton, armed to the teeth with blades, a hulking Orc with a sword at his hip and a large mace on his back, and an Imperial woman with a staff and wearing robes. Ivan's posture was defensive, it was clear that despite him seeming to calmly drink his beverage, he wasn't comfortable with the presence of these brigands. Just under the table, was Greta, tied up and with a rag in her mouth. She could be slain in a moment by any of those at the table or one of their nearby underlings. 

 

"Ah yes. Just the man we're looking for. If you can be called a man." Said the Breton. He had a darker complexion from most Bretons, like he had spent some time in warmer climates, and it had served to tan him some. He had his legs up on the table, and he was giving Yew a cocky smirk. 

 

"Well, call me what you like. So long as you don't hurt anybody else here and we can talk like gentlemen." Yew said.

 

"Gentleman huh? You're not an average mage aren't ye? You spent some time in the courts. Got a whiff of it on ya." The Breton said.

 

"Well done. You've caught me." Yew said. He was standing at the bottom of the stairs, facing the center of the table and staring him down.

 

"I have. Got you right where I want you." He said. 

 

"And what do you intend to do with me?" Yew asked. 

 

"Well...apparently, there are some people who want you. Don't know why. But We're getting paid quite a lot to bring you to them alive." He said.

 

"Your not taking him." Uthgerd growls.

 

"I really don't think your in any position to make demands. Grog?" The Breton said. The orc drew his sword and pointed the tip at Greta's throat. She stayed perfectly calm and still. Her eyes pleading with Yew. She didn't want him to give himself up, he realized.

 

"Leave her alone." Ivan said. It was low, casual and gentler then Yew would expect from him.

 

"And why should we do that?" The Breton said.

 

"Because nothing is going to happen to her or to him." Ivan said, indicating Yew with a nod of his head. 

 

"Why not?" The Breton said.

 

"Because if anything does I'll kill Grog. Then I'll kill your harlot witch. Then I'll kill all of your sellswords. Then and only then will I kill you. Depending upon how things unfold, I may kill you more or less gently. If any more innocents die, it will be slow." Ivan said. His tone was still low. It seemed like this wasn't something he enjoyed. He was just stating the facts, a bit sadly as well.

 

"Ivan. You've always been a milkdrinker. Even when everyone thought you were some true nord. I could see it. Smell it on you. You were always too much of a romantic." The Breton said. 

 

"I have my weaknesses. But I'm good with a sword. That's all I need to end you." Ivan said, and he shot the Breton a glare that would turn stone to dust. 

 

"Well. Good thing I don't intend to hurt either. I'd hate for our friendship to end. Yew Fey, it's time to go with us quietly." The Breton said.

 

Uthgerds hand went to her sword, which prompted The Breton's goons to draw their blades. 

 

"There's no need for that. I'll go quietly." Yew said.

 

"Yew." Uthgerd said, turning her head just slightly to give Yew a bit of a look. 

 

"It's fine. I'm not going to let anyone die just for my sake. I'll go." Yew said. He walked slowly and quietly forward, hands placed out in a submissive posture. Of course, that didn't exactly guarantee that he wouldn't try and use a spell, so the Breton's band formed around him.

 

The Breton got up from his table and took the final few steps. 

 

"Not so smug now are ya?" The Breton said.

 

"I've never been the smug type." He said.

 

Of course, Yew did not intend to go quietly. He reckoned he could cast piercing thorn fast enough to hit the Breton, that would probably startle the nearby goons for the couple seconds he needed to get a bit out of harms way. Then he would have to take the situation as it was. He just needed to wait for the perfect opportunity.

 

Ivan stood up.

 

"I'll go with you." Ivan said. The Breton looked confused, so did Yew.

 

"What?" The Breton said.

 

"I need to make sure you don't harm anyone else." Ivan said. The Breton turned around.

 

"Now you just listen here." The Breton said. Yew saw his chance and began making the hand motions necessary to cast Piercing thorn.

 

Then the door to the inn flew off it's hinges into the inn. A tall nord woman and a female Redguard burst into the room. The Redguard casting flames from her left hand while swinging a sword with her right. The Nord woman also whirled about with her blade. Ending the lives of two unfortunate sellswords in a matter of moments. Two other sellswords were burned by the flames, and then taken out of their misery with a few slashes from the Redguards blade.

 

Things began unfolding quite quickly. Yew sent a Piercing thorn into the abdomen of the Breton and he recoiled, grabbing the thorn sticking out of his side. Sadly for Yew, he didn't rip it out immediately. If he did he would have bled out quite quickly. Uthgerd sprung into action and decapitated one of the sellswords nearest to Yew. Two others turned to face Uthgerd, as she was the most immediately intimidating presence in their vicinity. Hualda smashed a bottle over the head of the sellsword woman that held her at knifepoint, then she took her knife from the knocked out woman and slit her throat.

 

Ivan sighed and scoffed. He took out his blade, and stared at Grog. Normally he would have given an opponent of Grogs honor the chance to surrender. However, even if he didn't know Grog well enough to know he'd refuse, looking into Grogs eyes he knew there was no other way.

 

"We'll settle this through strength of arms. No hurting the woman as long as I draw breath." Ivan said.

 

"Fine. I don't like hurting soft-skinned women anyway, less I need to." Grog said. They drew closer to each other and soon the clash of steel on steel reverberated through the inn. 

 

The bard found herself quite preoccupied as well. There was only so long she could cast burning hands, and now she found herself fighting with a Nord Sellsword, who was armed with a sword and shield. It was incredibly difficult to get past her opponent's defenses. She slashed left and right, but the sellsword kept putting his shield up and blocking the strike. 

 

She needed a way to get past it, and she knew just the method.

 

"Fus!" The Bard yelled and it resonated across the room, distracting most of the combatants. The shockwave knocked the Bard's rival on his ass and she cut off his head with one fluid movement. 

 

Yew was dealing with slightly overwhelming odds. It was true that most of the guards were dealing with Uthgerd, but he was still surrounded by The Bretons outlaws. So far, he was just trying to stay alive. Ducking slashes and swings of various weapons and trying not to be pushed into a corner. He needed to find the opportunity to cast a spell.

 

Finally, he found it when the Bard shouted. He drew the sigil for Piercing Thorn in the air and sent it into the neck of the nearest sellsword, killing him instantly. Yew quickly drew it again as the sellswords came to their wits, hitting a woman straight in her mailed chest. However, while it staggered her, it didn't kill her and she managed to cross the distance and slashed Yew across the arm, cutting him heavily across his arm. Yew drew back, clutching his bleeding arm. 

 

"Vile Thorns." Yew said while quickly drawing the sigil in the air. Three poisonous thin thorns materialized and hit his attacker right in the face. She fell to her knees and then slumped over, dead. 

 

 

Another came in to his left. He got a face full of acid for his trouble. Yew sent Sparks flying towards the one approaching from his right, shocking him and leaving him spasming on his feet. Yew then felt a sharp pain and spun backwards. A glancing blow had hit him across the side, dealt by a woman hefting a small axe. The other sellsword recovered from the sparks and the two began approaching yew from either side. 

 

Yew quickly took stock. He only had 1 use of Vile Thorns left. He had one use of Entangle, but if he used it, he would have to count on the floorboards of the Bannered Mare to be weak enough, or the spell to be strong enough, for vines to burst through and wrap around them. He was already out of Sparks and Acid Splash, as he prepared his spells to have a wider range of versatility and not specifically for combat. Though he did have a couple more Piercing Thorns. Right now he would have to make sure his Piercing thorns were accurate as he couldn't count on penetrating their armor enough to kill in one strike.

 

Yew had a couple of other first level spells. Touch of Rot and Winter Wind, but he had no idea how effective they'd be against these two. Really at this point, he had to choose something and just hope it would work out for the best.

 

"Come closer you bastards." He muttered. 

 

"No amount of coin is worth our lives. So sadly, this is the end for you." She said. 

 

Yew's back was up against the wall, both literally and metaphorically. He'd need to pull something out of the bag to succeed her. Judging from the racket in the rest of the room, no help was coming. 

 

It was now or never.


	18. Chapter 18

Yew made the motions and a will of the wisp was conjured into being, with another motion the orb of light flew into the male sellswords face. He was blinded and the female sellsword was startled long enough for Yew to make a second motion and threw a bolt of silver light at the female sellsword. She fell to her knees clutching her face as burns appeared. 

 

Yew thanked the gods he had prepared the cantrips, Will of the Wisp and Moonfire. Yew took out his bow and notched an arrow, finishing off first the female and then the male. 

 

"You've got a lot of tricks up your sleeve don't you?" The Breton said, staggering towards him. The thorn was now out of his body and he had stopped bleeding. Judging by the fact the Imperial mage was standing right beside him, he was pretty sure how he had accomplished that trick.

 

"Us druids make up for our unconventional casting style with versitality." Yew said. 

 

"I've heard tell of that. Thing is, a conventional mage can outlast you. And I've built up more knowledge of magic than a mere apprentice in my time." The Imperial mage woman said. 

 

"Ha. I'd like to see you try. Messing with a druid, even an apprentice like me...it's a mistake. Especially since you don't know what I can do." Yew said.

 

"You don't know what I can do either, Initiate." The mage said, her eyes sparkling. 

 

"By the Eight, I don't know whether to leave you alone to duel or to fuck. All I know is that the two of you can do either. I have other business to attend to." The Breton said. Yew turned his bow to the Breton, he couldn't let him escape, or harm someone else.

 

However, the Imperial mage had gotten in his way.

 

"You will deal with me, Initiate. And we will fight with magic alone. Unless you don't trust in your magical ability." The Imperial mage said. Yew smirked and relaxed his bow, before putting it and his arrow back in his quiver.

 

"If you want a magic duel. A magic duel you will get." Yew said. He had never felt more alive then this moment. 

 

 

Grog was incredibly strong. Stronger then Ivan, that much was certain. Every time their blades clashed Ivan got the worst of it. Grog also liked to punch and kick and knee and headbutt Ivan any chance he got. The nordic swordsman was being battered. It wasn't a sensation he felt very often. 

 

"You're a good fighter, Grog. A good brawler. Better then me." Ivan said.

 

"Ha. I never knew you to be one to talk during a fight. Or to admit weakness." Grog said.

 

"I'm not. But you forced my hand. I have a tremendous amount of respect for you Grog. As a fighter." Ivan said.

 

"Oh?" Grog said.

 

"But you are pathetic as a man. You do yourself a great disservice by obeying anybody who has you by the leash. By killing and raping when ordered. You don't lack a conscience, but you lack moral courage. I don't know if that makes you better or worse then your masters." Ivan said.

 

"I just am who I am. Just like you." Grog said.

 

"I know. I'm a monster too, so I don't have much of a right to judge. But I'm trying to make amends." Ivan said.

 

"You'll never do it. Not if you live for a thousand years." Grog said.

 

"Your right. But there's one other thing that I need to criticize you for." Ivan said.

 

"What's that." Grog said.

 

"You're a good fighter, but you're a shitty swordsman. I could have killed you countless times, if I had been fighting on my terms. I don't mean to condescend, but it was good seeing how you fight. In another life, you could have killed me." Ivan said. Then Grog knew nothing but the cold bite of steal.

 

The problem Uthgerd was having, had nothing to do with the individual skill of the Sellswords she was up against. They weren't bad fighters, but Uthgerd could have easily taken them one on one. It was more that whenever one was close to being bested by Uthgerd, their friends would help them out. It would have been touching had they not been desperately trying to murder her.

 

Uthgerd fought one of the bastards over to a table, took a mug and hit it hard against his skull, making a thud and lowering his guard enough for her to skewer him, then she whirled around and decapitated the next nearest. One of them tried to stab her in the back, but she got the edge of a blade to the face for the trouble. 

 

The last one fell to his knees and dropped his blade. Uthgerd hit him hard with her gauntleted fist. She didn't look down to confirm if he was dead or not. She didn't have time. She had to cut Greta free. 

 

"Your a big girl aren't ya?" The Breton said. He had an oddly silky voice for a cutthroat. Would that he had been a bard instead. Uthgerd turned around.

 

"Strangely honorable for a man like you, to alert me instead of stabbing me in the back or slitting my throat." Uthgerd said.

 

"That would have been a feat. I barely come up to your arse. Might as well tell me to slit the Throat of the World." The Breton said. 

 

"I suppose then that there is no point to me asking for your surrender." Uthgerd said.

 

"You could try." The Breton said.

 

"Surrender and you may still keep your life." Uthgerd said. The Breton looked to be in deep thought for several moments.

 

 

"Nah. I fancy my chances." The Breton said.

 

"Then I won't give you any mercy." Uthgerd said.

 

"Good. Likewise." The Breton said.


	19. Chapter 19

Uthgerd and The Breton began circling each other. The Breton with his short sword drawn and one hand on the dagger at his side. Uthgerd with her two-handed sword, which she kept level with him. Uthgerd had the obvious advantage in size, armor and strength, but the Breton had speed. Uthgerd needed to draw him in so she could counter him and kill him before he could withdraw. Or she could wear him down until he was exhausted and then catch him then. 

 

The Breton, of course, knew this, so he was expending very little energy. Keeping his distance and only occasionally taking swings at Uthgerd. He was trying to get under her guard, find some hole where he could quickly duck under and use his speed to quickly kill her before she could recover. In order to win he'd have to knock Uthgerd off balance long enough to slit her throat.

 

Neither was willing to give in. Klang Klang. Went the steel. Klang klang. 

 

 

"I saw you fighting our companions." the Imperial mage woman said.

 

"There your companions, are they? Well, were you dazzled by my fighting prowess?" Yew said.

 

"Oh yes. Problem is, I don't think you have many spells left. You did seem to be throwing quite a lot around." The mage said. Yew shrugged.

 

"Maybe. Maybe not. Thing is, you won't catch me without any spells left." Yew said.

 

"Ha. We shall see." The mage said. Both of them realized the other was buying themselves a bit of time. Neither of them really wanted a fight to the death. Yew was running low on spells, and the Mage herself had resources she had to manage as well. Both of them would like their side to win the fight and intervene before it came to a real battle. But they couldn't just back down now and wait. They had put their pride on the line after all.

 

"You know, your robes could cover a bit more. Cloth doesn't provide much protection but it is better than bare flesh." Yew said. Her mages robes displayed copious amounts of cleavage and leg. 

 

"Oh? Feeling a bit distracted? We could always resolve things a different way..." She said, pushing up her large breasts. They had to be at least DD's. Yew shuddered.

 

"No, thanks. I'm not interested in big breasts. I prefer a nice large rear and smaller breasts. No larger than a C for me thanks." Yew said. 

 

"What a bother. I should have known. Breton women don't usually have much going for them up top. And you're from High Rock aren't you?" The mage said.

 

"Born and raised." Yew said.

 

"Poor thing. You've been stuck around homely woman for so long that you've mistaken them for beauties." The Mage said.

 

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What's your name?" Yew said.

 

"I'll not give you my true name." The mage said.

 

"Alright. Can't fault me for trying." Yew said. He didn't have any spells that could curse her with her true name at the moment anyway.

 

"I suppose not, Willow of House Fey." The mage said.

 

"Impressive. Do you know much about me?" Yew asked.

 

"Much and more. More then I suspect you know about yourself." The mage said with a sly smile. That gave Yew some pause.

 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yew asked. She shrugged.

 

"We've stalled long enough I think. It's time to put your magic to the test." The mage said.

 

"You sure about th-" Yew started and just managed to duck a firebolt tossed by his rival.

 

"I told you we were starting. You can't blame me for taking a shot." The mage said.

 

"No, I really can't." Yew said, then he quickly drew the sigil and sent a piercing thorn towards the mage. She dodged out of the way.

 

"You're pretty clever. But not as clever as you think." The mage said.

 

"Oh?" Yew said.

 

"I've known plenty of men like you. Most men. And it's been quite some time since they've managed to get one over on me." The mage said.

 

"To me, that sounds like a bit of a challenge. I'm not like most men." Yew said.

 

"That's what most men say." The mage said.

 

"Do you doubt it?" Yew said.

 

"Strangely...I don't. But you'll die the same." She said and threw another firebolt. It was once again at his head, which allowed Yew to respond even more quickly and dodge. However, she had placed a fire rune trap right where he was dodging. Yew felt tremendous heat and collapsed to the floor, rolling to put himself out. He was also grabbing for a health potion flask on his hip. He grabbed it uncorked it and drank deeply.

 

He felt his wounds healing, but he felt weak and out of breath. Gasping on his knees, unable to stand.

 

"Men are never as clever as women. That's the simple truth." The Mage said.

 

"Then why....do you follow him." Yew managed to get out.

 

"Who says I'm the one following him?" The mage said, walking a bit closer to Yew.

 

"He's the one who brought you...along. He's....the one...who's talking." Yew said.

 

"I let him talk. I let him think he's in control. But he does nothing that is not my will." The mage said.

 

"You...sure about that?" Yew said. This gave the mage some pause.

 

Then she stepped forward again.

 

"I see what you're doing. Trying to buy time. Trying to turn me against him. You're an interesting one. If pathetic as all men." The mage said. She put her heel on his She ground the sharp point right into his back. 

 

"You're pretty cute too. Maybe I could keep you as a toy for a while. Might be fun." The mage said in a voice filled with desire. It made Yew's skin crawl. 

 

"How would you like that? Serving a beautiful woman? Laying with a true beauty for a few days or weeks or months, before you are killed or sentence to slavery or whatever is to happen to you? Would you like that." The mage said, her voice filled with sadistic pleasure. She ended with a course laugh.

 

"Winter wind." Yew said as he completed the sigil. The mage was blown off of him with a cold and powerful gust. She collapsed on her ass, shivering, wishing desperately that her robes were thicker. Yew staggered to his feet.

 

"I'll...never...submit to you." Yew said.

 

"We'll see about that." The mage said, her teeth chattering slightly. 

 

 

Freya was a whirlwind of steal bringing death to all that came in her direction. five sellswords met their end at the end of her blade. None of them could come even close to matching her skill. As she was going to make her way over to ending their leader she stumbled into someone else.

 

Ivan.

 

"You? What in Oblivion are you doing here?" Freya said.

 

"I could ask you the same thing." Ivan said.

 

"I made a sacred vow Ivan." Freya said.

 

"Then keep it." Ivan said. She quickly struck at Ivan with her sword. Klang. Steal against steal. Then again. Then again. The two of them were an even match for speed.

 

"I have no desire to end your life." Ivan said.

 

"Good. Then just die." Freya said and struck again.

 

"Can't do that either. Too much left to do." Ivan said.

 

So steel continued to clash against steel. Ivan remaining solidly on defense and Freya consistently on offense.


	20. Chapter 20

As the Mage got up, Yew sent another Piercing thorn racing towards her. She jumped out of the way, but the thorn caught her across the side, leaving a nasty gash across her side and tearing some of her robe. She let out a groan and grabbed her side. 

 

"Ha, your trying to get me out of my clothes after all." She said, trying hard not to sound pained and not doing a great job.

 

 

"Hardly. I hate to destroy your robes actually. They're kinda pretty." Yew said. 

 

"Oh? Thank you. I pride myself on maintaining some degree of fashion sense. Too many mages lock themselves into one boring set of robes. It's really a disgrace to our profession." The Mage said. 

 

"I agree. Sadly, I only really have one set of robes with me. You wouldn't mind recommending a good tailor, would you?" Yew asked.

 

"All the best ones are in Solitude. Shame you won't get a chance to meet them." The Mage said.

 

"Your pretty cocky for a woman who-" Yew began but was stopped when the Mage threw another firebolt, this one singed his hair a bit, burned his cheek and set his hood on fire. Thankfully the enchantments in the robe stopped it from lighting his entire robe on fire, and it quickly died, but his robe was still in bad shape. 

 

"That was a real bitch move you know that?" Yew said. 

 

"Do something about it." She said.

 

"Gladly." Yew said, and began casting a sigil. 

 

 

Freya kept up her merciless assault. Ivan was beginning to stagger at most every blow. He was getting weaker, she just needed to push on through.

 

"Yield. I don't want to hurt you." Ivan said. 

 

"I can't...I swore a vow." Freya said.

 

"Vows are words." Ivan said.

 

"Of course...you'd think that way." Freya said. 

 

"Last chance." Ivan said.

 

"I'll never give up." Freya said. Taking a moment to catch her breath and regain her balance.

 

"That's two bad. Your truly an artist." Ivan said. Then he was gone. 

 

Freya felt a sharp pain in both of her legs. Then warm liquid gushing out of her knees and flowing down them. She fell on her face, and she heard a terrible scream.

 

It took a moment to realize it was her own scream, crying out in pain.

 

"It's been a while since you've faced death, hasn't it?" Ivan said.

 

"Fuck you." Freya said curling up on her side. She had to staunch the flow of blood. Thank the gods she knew healing magic. A flood of healing energy came to her, powered by mana and stopping the flow of blood. Soon it would stitch her wounds back together.

 

She heard another terrible clang. More pain, and this time a fountain of blood erupting from both of her elbows. She screamed again.

 

"I'm sorry. If it was my choice I would have ended it quickly. Sadly, it is not." Ivan said.

 

"Daedra." Freya wheezed. 

 

"Your right. I am." Ivan said.

 

"Fus!" A yell once again resonated and Ivan was forced to his knees, a sword was quickly placed on his throat.

 

"Dragonborn." Ivan growled.

 

"Or a spoony bard. Call me what you will." The Bard said.

 

Yew finished casting Vile thorns and three thin, long, poison covered thorns went shooting straight for her chest. At the last moment, the mage put a ward up, deflecting all three thorns. Two of them stuck into the floor, the third went rocketing back to Yew, and he had to practically roll out of the way to avoid getting hit.

 

"Clever. But very risky. If you hadn't put your ward up at the right time, you'd be dead." Yew said. 

 

"I know, but we all have to take a certain number of risks. Otherwise, we'd get nowhere would we." She said, lowering her wards.

 

"I suppose so. Still, it would be better if you just surrendered. Nobody has to die today, you know?" Yew said. 

 

"People have died today. Quite a few, I think. And more of my people than yours." The mage said. 

 

"Then give up. It's over for you." Yew said. Indeed the battle was finishing. Soon his allies would close in and surround the mage. There'd be no place to run then.

 

"While I still draw breath I will never give up. In that way, I am just like you." The mage said. The two smiled at each other, a look of recognition. One of them would die, but they knew, at least, that they were kindred spirits. 

 

Then lightning leapt from the Mage's fingertips. It was fast, too fast for Yew to dodge, and he had no counter. He felt a surge of electricity shock his body, and then Yew banged his head against the corner of a nearby table and collapsed. 

 

Yew was out cold.


	21. Chapter 21

Yew woke up with a start, to see Uthgerd's face hovering over him. Which wouldn't be a bad sight, if she wasn't still covered in a bit of blood. Thus it was quite startling. 

 

"Hey. Finally awake. We've got some things to catch you up on." Uthgerd said. Yew got to his feet with a little assistance from Uthgerd. He was back in his room. His wolf peacefully asleep not far from him.

 

"What happened? Everybody ok?" Yew asked.

 

"There were some fatalities, Greta's alright though." Uthgerd said.

 

"What about the bandits?" I asked.

 

"A few of them got away. The mage had a warp spell apparently." Uthgerd said.

 

"Damn. What else?" Yew said. He felt a little weak and wobbly on his feet, but otherwise ok, so he must have been healed.

 

"Well, the Thane you were looking for is here. She helped bail our asses out." Uthgerd said. Yeah, that made sense. She had been throwing around those shouts. "Fus" or whatever and her and her friend had provided a good distraction, as well as killing quite a few of them, from what Yew was able to gauge.

 

"Alright then, where is she? I'll need to talk with her as soon as possible." Yew said.

 

"You sure about that? You should probably get some rest. Greta just didn't want you to wake up alone, not knowing anything." Uthgerd said.

 

"I...I suppose as long as the situation is stable, I could rest a bit longer." Yew said. He was still exhausted. The fighting and his bodies healing had taken a lot out of him.

 

"Sounds good. I'll be just outside the door if you need anything." Uthgerd said. 

 

Yew sat back on his bed and processed things a bit more. That was probably about the closest brush with death he had since he got here, and he had his share already. He should have probably approached things more pragmatically, but something came over him. That desire for a challenge. He thought it probably was part of what drew Earth Yew to gaming and this world's Yew to his path. 

 

He closed his eyes just for a second and a notification popped up. It showed he had increased several skill levels including Speech and Druidism. As well as a few he hadn't ever heard of or seen before, this being Planning, Lore and Occult.

 

Yew also had apparently leveled up the interface. Apparently Yew would now be able to see his character sheet every time he went to bed, instead of just at standing stones. That was pretty handy. 

 

Apparently, though he hadn't leveled up his main character level. In fact, he should have received that skill level up screen when he was knocked out, but he couldn't recall that happening at all. Maybe it was different when he was knocked out due to injury as opposed to natural sleep. 

 

Yew prepared his spells, prayed and meditated. After that, he begin to feel a lot better. The rest having done him some good. However, he was starving.

 

"Uthgerd. Could you grab me some food? Greta knows what I like, have her surprise me." Yew said. 

 

"Of course." Uthgerd said and headed down, with her heavy, plodding footsteps. It wasn't too long before she came back up again and opened the door, armed with a good feast of a breakfast.

 

"Here you are." Uthgerd said.

 

"How long was I out?" Yew asked. 

 

"Nearly a day." Uthgerd said.

 

"Any news?" Yew asked. 

 

"Not really. Everyone is recuperating. The Thane will stay in town to talk with you, but otherwise, nothing much else has been discussed." Uthgerd said.

 

"I see. I'd like to thank you for all you did yesterday. I'd have been dead without you." Yew said. 

 

"Your welcome and I feel the same way about you, Fey." Uthgerd said with a nod. The two kept their eyes on each other, the sense of respect gradually turning into mutual grins. 

 

"I have a feeling it will be a great pleasure traveling with you." Yew said.

 

"Likewise Sir Fey." Uthgerd said.

 

Yew finished his lunch, and rested a bit more. 

 

"Where is Greta? I'd like to see her." Yew said. 

 

"Everyone's at the Keep. I'll bring you down there if you want." Uthgerd said. 

 

"Let's go." Yew said. The two left, leaving Yew's wolf some food of his own. 

 

The Bannered Mare was a mess. Much of the place was riddled with sword marks and scorch marks and broken plates and tables and spilled food and booze. Blood was everywhere. 

 

"This place is a disaster." Yew said. He was a bit sad actually. It seemed like a good tavern to rest ones legs after a difficult adventure.

 

 

"Could have been worse. Could have burned to the ground. Everyone will ban together and get this place fixed up, don't you worry about that." Uthgerd said. 

 

"That's good to hear." Yew said. 

 

The two headed out. Whiterun guards stood on watch just outside the inn, resting their hands on their weapons.

 

"Ah. You must be the druid Greta told us about. I heard you fought well. I know you may have been fighting to defend yourself, still, you did much for this city by doing so. So I must extend my thanks." Said a female guard.

 

"I feel humbled for doing so. I wouldn't say I was fighting for the city, but I was fighting for my life, the lives of my companions and the lives of the people in the Bannered Mare at the time. I can take credit for no more additional heroism." Yew said.

 

"That still makes you a fine man in my eyes. May the Divines keep you safe." She said and bowed her head a bit. Most of her fellow guards did the same. 

 

The pair walked through the city practically unhindered. Most of the citizens had apparently retreated to their homes. Travelers had ostensibly just fled to other inns or public houses, perhaps even brothels. It was quiet, as it had been since Yew woke up, and fairly dreary. Yew and Uthgerd ascended the stars to DragonsReach. The guards letting him go in with a nod from Uthgerd. 

 

 

There was a long table placed in the center of the hall. Greta, the redguard bard from the Bannered Mare, the tall female nord warrior who had been the Redguard woman's companion. as well as several other people were conversing at the table. Above them sat a nord man sitting on a throne. He was looking down at them carefully as if listening closely, but his eyes raised when the door to the hall opened. At either side of the throne stood a dunmer woman in leather armor and a richly dressed imperial man. It was a diverse court, which made sense for a powerful trade center in one of the Empire's key provinces. 

 

 

"What do we have here? That's Uthgerd the Unbroken there, well known in this city for good and ill. And you must be the druid from High Rock. Yew Fey." The Jarl spoke. 

 

"That I am, my lord." I said and bowed deeply.

 

"I am not overly familiar with the lore of High Rock, but I have heard tell of your kind. Gathering power yet again since the fall of the mages guild." The Jarl said.

 

"Yes. Though I myself have much to learn of my order. I was sent here mostly by a twist of fate. Otherwise I would have continued learning with my order." Yew said.

 

"Indeed. I understand you helped to save my citizens by dealing with a group of bandits."

 

"I happened to be at the Bannered Mare at a time when a hero was needed. I did what I could. However, I mostly was concerned with the lives of my companions and myself. " Yew said.

 

"That is to be expected. Still, your aid has done my city good. You will be compensated for your efforts." The Jarl said. Yew gave a bow.

 

"My lord are you sure? We do not know this person's motives." The Imperial said.

 

"Are you disobeying the Jarl, Avenicci?" The dunmer woman said.

 

"No! I was merely reminding him of the precarious situation we are in. What if he is a rebel too? We can't afford to associate with such people when we are in such a delicate position of Neutrality." The Imperial said.

 

"Proventus. Irrilith. Stand down. We owe this man for his heroism. And we could use someone of his talents." The Jarl said. 

 

"I'd be pleased to hear of how I might be of use. However, I would like my payment first." Yew said. 

 

The court was eerily silent. Then The Jarl let out a bark of a laugh and gestured to Yew enthusiastically.

 

"I like this druid's grit. Get him his payment." The Jarl said. Proventus bowed and disappeared upstairs. 

 

"Jarl. If I may be so bold, is that redguard woman the dragon slayer?" Yew said.

 

"Yes. I am." The redguard bard said. 

 

"A bard, who may be the legendary dragonborn, and a druid of High Rock appearing in my court. Along with the return of dragons and this damned civil war. These are unusual times." The Jarl said. 

 

"Dangerous. The world is out of balance." Yew said. 

 

"Balance you say? Yes, I suppose so." The Jarl said. 

 

"How do you mean balance?" The Redguard bard said. 

 

"The world has it's own harmony and it is now out of tune." Yew said. 

 

"Huh." She said. Yew thought she looked troubled.

 

Proventus handed Yew a pouch of gold and a dagger. It was enough that Yew could get by for a good number of days. The dagger looked like another good fallback weapon.

 

"I thank you. Now then. What would this task be?" Yew said. 

 

"I'd like for you to help me solidify control over my hold. You've been on the roads. They are thick with bandits. Adventurers eager for gold and glory journey to old tombs and awaken dragur and darker things. Chaos grips the land. I must protect my people and I must preserve order. Elsewise this fragile neutrality, which is likely the only thing preventing this civil war from breaking out into battles and sieges. So far, it's just been skirmishes and little else. If things get bad here or we are forced to pick a side, even if that side is our own, then this will turn into a bloodbath that won't end until Jarl Ulfric or Jarl Elisif is dead or made a hostage." The Jarl said. 

 

"I'd be pleased to help, as long as the payment keeps coming. Just to let you know that I don't intend to work for anyone faction. I merely exist to serve Nature and her gods. As long as your purpose serves the balance or doesn't disrupt it and the payment keeps coming to support my existence in this city, then I will gladly serve you as well." Yew said.

 

"I hope you don't mean the continuation of this war serves some kind of cosmic balance." The Jarl said.

 

"Of course not. That would be absurd. Wars don't often serve anyone but lords and kings. This civil war is none of my concern in any way. At least not for the moment." Yew said. The dragons were his concern of course. Everything else was a distraction. 

 

"Then let us hope that cooler heads will prevail." The Jarl said.

 

"In any case, as soon as you are fit, I would ask of you to hunt down that bandit leader who attacked you in the Bannered Mare. He and his mage will quickly become a thorn in our sides again. And I can't let criminals think they can get away with attacking this city." The Jarl said.

 

That was when another notification popped up. 

 

Quest- Find and Kill Noctis Tharn

Rewards- Exp

Gold

The Jarls trust

Leveled equipment

???

???

Part of the main Questline.

 

Yew blinked. A main questline huh? And killing this random bandit leader was apart of it? It was strange. What kind of game was this that he had been thrust into by the gods?

 

"What say you?" The Jarl asked.

 

"I'll accept the deal. If need be I'll do it alone. However, if my companions are still interested in traveling with me-" Yew started.

 

"I'll help." Greta said.

 

"As will I." Uthgerd said shortly thereafter. 

 

"You seem to have gained some loyalty from your friends here. Considering the two individuals in question, it speaks highly of your character." The Jarl said.

 

"Before we leave I must have a conversation with your new Thane. Considering the objectives of my order, her abilities are of utmost interest to me." Yew said.

 

"I'd be pleased. I want to talk to you myself;f." The bard-thane said. 

 

"Well then, I'll set you free. Talk. Gather what supplies you can and prepare, then set off. Those two could be anywhere." The Jarl said. 

 

"They couldn't have gone too far, my lord." Said a refined male voice. It was a nord clad in the blue robes of a mage. 

 

"Farengar, what do you mean by this?" The Jarl said.

 

"Well, Teleportation magic is quite difficult. And while it is true that this bandit lords mage whore is quite powerful, she isn't an Archmage. She couldn't be more than a league away. Most likely far less. She was most likely simply able to pop outside the city, in some shady spot she had marked ahead of time, just in case." Farengar said.

 

"I see. Yew, this is my court mage Farengar. Farengar this is-" The Jarl said.

 

"Yew Fey. An initiate of the Druid Order. I am well aware. Folk of your order don't tend to stray outside High Rock. These truly are interesting times if they have chosen to send someone barely able to cast first level spells." Farengar said. 

 

"Farengar. Do not berate our guest. He has proven himself worthy." The Jarl said.

 

"I suppose he has, my lord." Farengar said.

 

"Anyway, make sure to use Farengar for any magical aid you may require." The Jarl said.

 

"I'll be sure to." Yew said. 

 

"Now then. You are free to talk in my hall or stay any time you like." The Jarl said.

 

"Thank you for your generosity and hospitality." Yew said.

 

"Let's meet elsewhere, if that's alright. There's an inn I know called the Laughing Maid. It's no Bannered Mare, but it will work for our purposes." The Bard said. 

 

"Alright then. I'll follow you there. Is it alright if my companions come along?" Yew asked.

 

"Certainly. I'll be bringing Freya." The Bard said.

 

"Hardly. I'd be going to that inn anyway. The Jarl's hall is grand enough for an after battle feast. But it's no place for a shieldmaiden of Skyrim to spend her life. No offense Lydia." Freya said.

 

"None taken Freya. Your ways are different from mine, which is just what's best for both of us." Another warrior woman said. She wasn't bad looking herself. Apparently this world was a haven of attractive people. Yew reckoned that was a fine thing, as long as the distractions didn't get him killed.

 

"Indeed. Let's get a move on. I'd rather we resolve this quickly. I always need more sleep after a good fight and a good feast. Only things left are a good fuck and a good rest." Freya said. 

 

"Well, I certainly don't want to keep you up. " Yew said.

 

"Yes, you do." Freya said. Yew's libido had kicked into overdrive, he was going to have to take care of that himself. Either with someone's help or alone, as quickly as possible.

 

The Bard merely got up and began leading everyone out.


	22. Chapter 22

The Bard lead them down the winding backstreets of Whiterun into the Red Light District. On the edge of which was The Laughing Maid. It was the only true inn and tavern in the Red Light District. Every other such establishment was a brothel or a winesink. 

 

Yew felt a thrill being here. He was fairly sure that in his earth life, he hadn't been to such a place. And sure, it lacked glamor, but it still had an appeal. Less like a real slum, and more of a slightly glamorized fantasy slum, the kind you might find in movies or on tv. Even most of the streetwalkers seemed attractive, though he hadn't seen many, and they were still on the borderland between this district and the rest of the city. Even more, there was a tingle of the forbidden here, and of ready ways to satisfy his everpresent lust.

 

Looking over the Yew of Tamriel though...he wasn't sure if during his time at court and apprenticed to the Order if he had ever found himself looking for members of the oldest profession and enjoying their service. His memories were still relatively spotty and unclear. But he felt like he was getting closer. He had a fairly good feeling that talking to the Bard was key to advancing, both his objective as a Druid and his objective of himself. 

 

The inn itself was filled with an assortment of interesting characters. The serving maids were quite attractive, and wore dresses that exposed much of their cleavage and legs, while also clinging tightly around their hips and backsides. Among the customers were a few grubby sorts, likely residents of the district and poverty-ridden. It was clear these residents didn't receive much of the benefits of living in a fantasy world. The other portion were the more mysterious collection. These were people who wore better clothing and often carried weapons. These were either adventurers or members of higher classes within Whiterun. 

 

The Bard and Freya headed immedietly for a table near the back. Yew noticed that everyone here kept their weapons strapped, it was usually the case, as far as he had seen, for those with weapons to unstrap them and put them on the floor. People would occasionally keep daggers strapped, and mercenary sorts like Ivan seemed to keep strapped almost always as well. Yew felt tense already. His wolf's fur was standing on end. 

 

Yew felt eyes on him as he walked through the inn. Many of them seemed curious or on edge. He saw a few hands stray towards hilts. Once he sat down though, people started to relax and talk in a more normal voice. Uthgerd and Greta took seats beside him. 

 

"What was that about?" Yew asked to Freya.

 

"You came here with a wolf. You seem to be a member of the old faith. People have mixed feelings about those folk around here." Freya said. 

 

"Old Faith?" Yew asked. 

 

"The more traditional worship of Kyne by native nords. People associate such folk with strange magic and madness." Freya said. 

 

"Fascinating. I'd like to learn more about how the old faith is practiced here in Skyrim. But that can be saved for another time." Yew said.

 

A maid who had been discussing things fervently with an older woman and a man with a rather thick beard, made her way over to the table. 

 

"Uh excuse me sir, your...wolf has been causing a bit of a stir." The maid said. The Bard took out a few coins and tossed them on the table.

 

"Thank you kindly for your patronage. " She said, giving a bit of a curtsy.

 

"It's fine. A buxom maiden like you shouldn't have to worry about a little extortion to earn her coin. That outfit should be enough." The Bard said. 

 

"I thank you kindly milady thane." The maid said and gave her deeper curtsey.

 

"Careful now, or everyone will spy your womanhood." Freya said. 

 

"You'll need to pay me more then that madame." The maid said.

 

"I like you. Now, what would you recommend?" Yew said. They made their order and she swayed off. 

 

"Let's get down to it. What do you want to talk with me about?" The Bard said.

 

"I wanted to talk to you about your powers, and to get the measure of you. First things first though...what's your name?" Yew asked.

 

"Measure of me and my powers? What're your intentions?" The Bard asked. 

 

"My intentions are as I've said. To preserve the balance. Of the natural world. Between the civilized and the natural. To ensure that things are kept stable. That's all." Yew said. 

 

"Stable huh? Stable doesn't necessarily mean just." The Bard said. 

 

"Justice isn't my prerogative here. I haven't got any business in deciding Skyrim's justice for Skyrim. I mean only to make sure the world isn't in jeopardy and then return to High Rock." Yew said.

 

"Huh. So you don't want anything for yourself?" The Bard said.

 

"I want plenty for myself. However I am not so selfish as to leave the natural world to be destroyed when it's calling out in need. The gods and spirits of nature are calling out in aid, and you might be the one who needs to answer that call." Yew said.

 

The Bard looked thoughtful and tapped on the table with a finger. 

 

"These gods you worship...who are they?" The Bard asked. 

 

"The teachings of the Druidic order is to be kept only to the Order and those who follow the Old Faith of High Rock." Yew said. 

 

"Even what gods you worship?" Freya asked.

 

"Yes. We worship all that is apart of natures' harmony. That's all outsiders need to know." Yew said. He didn't need to keep the Gods he worshiped secret. That was hardly one of the closely guarded secrets of the order. However, druids on a misson were allowed a certain degree of clemency with what information they handed out to targets of their missions. He was allowed to play things as close to the chest as he chose and could give out more information then he would normally be allowed to, excluding secret teachings of the Order. 

 

By keeping things a bit mysterious he was testing her, gauging her reactions.

 

"So...I'm guessing you worship Kynereath?" The Bard said.

 

"Not as such.' Yew said.

 

"Kyne then." The Bard said.

 

"...Correct." Yew said.

 

"Names are important to you then?" The Bard said.

 

"Names are important to everyone. And what they stand for. Kyne means the untamed wild, Kynereath is the more...civilized aspects. Agriculture and the like." Yew said. 

 

"So that's the difference." The Bard said.

 

"Precisely. Speaking of names. You never told me yours." Yew asked.

 

"I haven't. Now who else do you worship." The Bard said.

 

"There's no sense in trying to guess. Let's talk about when you learned about your gift. This...voice you use." Yew said.

 

"Not yet. I don't turn down riddles and you've presented me with a fairly interesting one. The Druids of Galen...that's what your order is called if I remember correctly. You are a renewal of the order that defined the Bretons of High Rock far in the past. They were even closer to the Elves then they are today. Which means they wouldn't be opposed to worshipping the same gods. Now, who was that Bosmeri god...Y'ffre right?" The Bard said.

 

"Correct again. However I didn't present to you the Gods of my faith as a test to be solved." Yew said.

 

"Yes you did. Of course you did. Now then...I wonder how your order feels about Daedra?" The Bard said. 

 

"Daedra? I'm afraid I don't know what you mean." Yew said.

 

"Surely you know what Daedra are?" Greta said. 

 

"I'm aware of the concept. Those spiritual entities arbitrarily split off from the so-called "Aedra" right?" Yew said.

 

"Huh. So I'm guessing you do worship them don't you...Hircine, I suspect. Considering his association with beasts and the hunt." The Bard said.

 

"Correct. Knowing this gains you little, you do realize." Yew said. 

 

"It gains me self satisfaction. That's very important. It also gains me your respect." The Bard said.

 

"As I said. It gains you little. You have self-satisfaction in spades. And I'm not someone whose respect you need to gain, Milady Thane." Yew said.

 

"I'd rather not be called milady. And a woman like me...I'm a woman of the people. Never know whose respect you might need when your on the road." The Bard said. 

 

"This is very true. Though friends usually call each other by their names." Yew said.

 

"How many more gods do you worship, druid of Galen." The Bard said.

 

"That depends on the druid in question. But if you want to know the Order itself prioritizes a limited selection of Gods. Those who best aligned with our principals. Who see the need in balance." Yew said.

 

"So less than eight huh? Maybe half?" The Bard said.

 

"What is your game exactly Bard?" Yew said.

 

"I'm merely participating in the game you started. You can't simply deny telling a bard a story and then not allow them the chance to guess at it. To pick it apart until it unravels." The Bard said. 

 

It was Yew's turn to look thoughtful. This was certainly not what he had thought this conversation would go. However, he was getting the distinct impression that he had been right about her being from another world like he was. It was clear that she knew more then she should. Otherwise, how was she able to so easily solve this.

 

Then again...bardic lore was a thing in DnD wasn't it? In RPG's wasn't it common for Bards to be highly knowledgeable about the world?

 

"Alright then. I'll play along. Unraveling riddles is a worthy enough pursuit. What's your last guess." Yew said. 

 

"Namira." The Bard said. With that the table took a much more tense atmosphere. Greta gasped. Uthgerd scowled and even Freya, who had been watching more or less amused, seemed taken off guard. The room went again, suddenly quiet.

 

"You shouldn't speak her name." Greta hissed. 

 

"You dare accuse Yew of such heinous practices. I ought to slay you where you stand." Uthgerd said, her hand on her hilt. Freya's hand went towards her own sword hilt.

 

"Hold. The Bard didn't do anything wrong. She is in fact correct. My order does worship Lady Namira in her aspect of mistress of decay and darkness. Everything has it's place in nature. Even those things considered unsettling by most mortals." Yew said. 

 

Greta and Uthgerd looked at Yew with conflicted expressions on their face. 

 

"But...the cult of Namira..." Greta said.

 

"There's a reason we don't let them worship in the light. They commit horrible acts." Uthgerd said.

 

"I'm sorry to hear that. But our worship of Namira doesn't involve anything horrible, I assure you. " Yew said. 

 

"It's true, as far as I can know. His order is known more for curing diseases then spreading them. There's reasons they've displaced the old Mage's Guild. Part of them is a certain generosity towards the people." The Bard said.

 

"So you do know about my order." Yew said.

 

"Enough. I've been to High Rock before. Good food, interesting people, didn't care for the politics." The Bard said.

 

"Politics seem complicated here as well though." Yew said.

 

"Not to my eyes. Fairly simple easy. You wear a red cloak or a blue cloak and bash open the heads of those wearing the opposite cloak. Key is just don't wear cloaks and you'll be fine." The Bard said.

 

"I see. So you care little for this dispute between the Stormcloaks and the Empire?" Yew said.

 

"Why would I? Neither Ulfric nor Tullius has done one thing that has kept me fed nor saved my skin. Nor has the Empire or Skyrim for that matter. My loyalty is to myself." The Bard said.

 

"Fair enough. I have no real allegiance to either side myself. But please now, this is thrice I've asked it of you. Will you tell me your name?" Yew said.

 

"Yes of course. My name is Jasmine. It's good to meet you. So let's talk honestly." The Bard said.

 

"I haven't been speaking falsely." Yew said.

 

"Yes, but you haven't been telling me the whole truth have you?" Jasmine said.

 

"That's true enough, but neither have you." Yew said.

 

Jasmine got up and strolled over to the bar. She slapped some coins down on the table.

 

"I'll take a room." Jasmine said.

 

"Ok then. Here's your key. Upstairs, first room on the left." The bartender said.

 

"Perfect. Follow me then Druid. We'll discuss things alone." Jasmine said.

 

"Sorry. I'll have to do this. You enjoy your dinner." Yew said and nodded at his companions.

 

"I understand." Greta said.

 

"Be careful." Uthgerd said.

 

Yew followed her to the room. As soon as he entered she closed and locked the door behind them. 

 

"May I ask what's going on?" Yew said. He was trying to keep cool, but quite frankly, he was worried. If she tried to kill him, he wouldn't know how to respond.

 

To Yew's surprise she began taking off her sword and toeing off her boots.

 

"Take off your weapons and robes." Jasmine said.

 

"What exactly is the purpose of this meeting?" Yew said. He felt his lust grow as Jasmine took off her jerkin, exposing her perky breasts held up by a bra. 

 

"I need to know that I can trust you. So disregard your weapons and take off your robes." Jasmine said as she began taking off her pants. 

 

Yew did so, it was the best way to avoid staring too much at Jasmine's curves.

 

"What exactly was the point of this? Both of us have access to magic." Yew said, as he stood in his own underwear. 

 

"It's the principal of the matter. Symbolism, making ourselves more vulnerable will increase trust. Besides, you can learn a lot of things by asking people to strip." Jasmine said. 

 

"Oh really?" Yew said.

 

"Yes. Like you for example. You either aren't packing very much or you don't particularly like the ladies. Or maybe I'm just not your type." Jasmine said, pointing to the front of Yew's underwear, noting the...underdevolped bulge.

 

"Ah. There it is, looks a bit stiffer now. Fascinating." Jasmine said.

 

"My eyes are up here." Yew said.

 

"Yeah. Yeah. So what's the deal? You end up here in a different body too?" Jasmine asked.

 

"...Yes. So I was right about my assumption towards you as well." Yew said. 

 

"Are you from earth?" She asked.

 

"Yes. Skyrim and the Elder scrolls were just games in my world." Yew said. 

 

"I know. I've played it dozens of times." Jasmine said.

 

"Really? I had only just started playing it. I'm more familiar with tabletops and CRPGs then the Elder scrolls. But I had finally gotten around to starting it the night before I came here. I didn't get too far." Yew said.

 

"Ha. Nerd." Jasmine said.

 

"You just said you've played Skyrim dozens of times." Yew said.

 

"Skyrim is much less geeky then D&D though." Jasmine said. Yew just shook his head.

 

"I'm teasing. You look kinda cute when your upset." Jasmine said.

 

"So...have you told anyone?" Yew asked.

 

"No. And you shouldn't either. At best it accomplishes nothing. At worst it could mean they think we're insane or worse, the gods of this place might intervene against us." Jasmine said.

 

"Apparently we are here for a reason. I'm supposed to find a chosen one and help guide them. I think...no I'm pretty sure that person is you." Yew said.

 

"Ok. Well, that's great and all, but I have no interest in being the chosen one." Jasmine said.

 

"What do you mean?" Yew asked.

 

"I quickly got bored of completing Skyrim for the main plot. Mostly I had been playing it for mods and roleplaying characters." Jasmine said.

 

"So you don't want to save this world because you got bored of playing a video game in your prior life?" Yew said. 

 

"No. I'll still save the world if it means that I get to stay here and remain alive. I just have no interest in being some kind of chosen one. If I need to kill Alduin, I'll do it, but as for all that other stuff, let someone else do it, I'd rather solidify my own destiny." Jasmine said.

 

"Alduin?" Yew asked.

 

"He's who's causing all this chaos. The world eater that may put all of our fun to an end. Anyway, I'll end him if I need to. I just don't want to do all the prep work. Besides the training. I quite like developing my skills here." Jasmine said. 

 

"What prepwork?" I asked.

 

"Alduins going to go to Sovengard, which is basically Nord Valhalla, and I'll need to kill him there. Everything else is just build-up to that. And it's boring. I want to get drunk, get into fights and duels, seduce attractive people, and be a bard. I have no interest in the civil war or the damn Blades or any of that." Jasmine said.

 

Yew sighed, this was going to be harder then he anticipated.

 

"Fine then. When will that be happening?" Yew said.

 

"The game progressed at the pace of the player. So I have no idea. You seem to have all kinds of mystical knowledge. Maybe you can figure that out." Jasmine said.

 

Yew hoped he could, otherwise, there was a few glaring flaws in this whole "save the world from destruction" plan the gods have cooked up.


	23. Chapter 23

"Ok Then. I'll try and figure it out. But I'll need a good source of information." Yew said.

 

"The inns and taverns of this city are a good start. You'll learn things here first that everyone will soon know, and you'll learn things no one else can tell you. The innkeepers are sorta the internet of this place. Well, books are the internet maybe...point is innkeepers know a lot. Just like in video games." Jasmine said.

 

"And tabletops, yeah." Yew nodded.

 

"But really the best information will be at court. Especially for news from outside this city. Most of the time normal folk only have access to news at best to about five miles in each direction from the city limits. The court has scouts, messengers, messenger birds and magic to gather information. If you really want your hand on the pulse, then you'll have to get in good with the Jarl." Jasmine said.

 

"Sounds like a plan. How do I go about doing that?" Yew said.

 

" I dunno. Do quests for him. Charm him. Show off your ass. Suck his cock. I've down the first three and he seems to like me pretty well." Jasmine said.

 

"Ask a dumb question..." Yew said.

 

"You'll be alright. You seem pretty smart. And it's not like I won't help you at all. I just hate to do things just because I'm supposed to...if you know what I mean." Jasmine said.

 

"Not really. But I respect it. We should probably head out. Otherwise, they'll worry. Or think we're fucking." Yew said.

 

"Pft, as if you could last this long with me." Jasmine said.

 

"My tongue could." I said.

 

"A bottom huh? Should have called that." Jasmine said, she headed towards the door.

 

"Might not want to leave without your clothes." Yew said.

 

"I'm a quirky bard. I can do what I want." Jasmine said.

 

"People don't trust me here. I'd rather you walk out of this room with clothes on." Yew said.

 

"Fine. I just wanted to see if you would stare at my ass when I walked past anyway. And you totally did by the way." Jasmine said.

 

"W-well it is a very nice butt." Yew said.

 

"I know." Jasmine said. And she started getting dressed. Yew was able to pry his eyes off of Jasmine for long enough to do the same.

 

The two-headed back down. 

 

"You two were gone for some time." Greta said.

 

"Did you two fuck or what?" Uthgerd said. Greta gave her a look.

 

"No. We did not. We merely discussed some things. And I've decided to help you. If any of you three need any help. Myself and Freya will offer our services." Jasmine said.

 

"Oh. That is very kind of you." Greta said.

 

"You two must have had quite the conversation." Uthgerd said. 

 

"We did. I suppose I owe you two a conversation of your own. You must have questions concerning my order, and what things I will expect from you when in my company. And what you can expect from me. We'll talk all about it in private." Yew said. 

 

"Are we staying here?" Uthgerd asked.

 

"I'm not sure that would be a good idea. Is there a more...accommodating inn, besides the one our little battle ruined?" Yew asked.

 

"A few but this place isn't bad. And I know you've been getting stares, but it's unlikely to come to more than that. Relax and get a room." Jasmine said.

 

"Is everyone else fine with that?" Yew asked his team.

 

"Aye. I don't mind where I sleep." Uthgerd said.

 

"Yes. That is fine." Greta said, though she was clearly a bit uncomfortable. 

 

Yew and Jasmine finished their meal and Jasmine and Freya retired to the room Jasmine had bought earlier. Yew then went up to buy a room for the night. 

 

The room wasn't that bad all things considered. It was certainly better then most medieval inns on earth would have looked like, but it wasn't as good as the rooms at the Bannered Mare. 

 

"There's only one bed." Greta said.

 

"Don't worry. I can sleep on the floor." Uthgerd said.

 

"I...I mean that doesn't solve all of it." Greta said.

 

"If you want I can sleep on the floor as well." Yew said.

 

"I...I don't want both of you to have to sleep on the floor for my benefit. Maybe I could sleep on the floor...or..." Greta said.

 

"Or?" Yew asked.

 

"Or we could...allsleeptogether. If that wouldn't be too strange." Greta said, looking a bit embarrassed and nervous. Yew raised an eyebrow at this. It certainly was intriguing. 

 

"I sure wouldn't mind it. But I don't know if we could all fit." Uthgerd said.

 

"We will have to discuss it later. For now let's talk. It's a bit early for bed anyway." Yew said.

 

"That's true...and I have my questions." Greta said. 

 

"I do as well." Uthgerd said.

 

"I understand completely. It must have been shocking to hear about my worship of gods that are viewed...less than favorably. You must be questioning my values. I wanted to make things very clear." Yew said. 

 

"First: I have no intentions of murdering or hurting any innocent people. I intend to only hurt those in situations of self defense, when doing so would protect an innocent life, or for a greater harmony. However, I will take pains on avoiding killing if I can. Killing isn't the best way to strive for Harmony." Yew said.

 

"What exactly does it mean, to strive for harmony?" Uthgerd said.

 

"I confess I'm not totally sure what you mean by that either." Greta said.

 

"I'm getting to that point. Secondly: I lay with both men and women. My libido is quite strong so expect me to do this often. If you are in any way uncomfortable with that it's best if I know now." Yew said.

 

"I...I'm fine with that myself." Greta said.

 

"No problems here." Uthgerd said.

 

"Excellent. Next, clearly you have noticed my more...feminine qualities. Neither of you have seemed to have much of a problem with these before, but I can't gurrantee that it will always be the same with any who we might encounter. Especially if I dress in a more outwardly feminine manner. Do you find this acceptable?" Yew said.

 

"If anyone says a word they'll be eating their own teeth." Uthgerd said. 

 

"I have no problem with who you are. Even though I'm not...I cannot...your a very unique person in my experience." Greta said.

 

"I understand that. Now to the greater harmony aspect. I'm striving for balance not just between civilization and nature, not just between mortals and the gods, but between civilizations themselves. Between groups of people. We envision a world where groups of people can cooperate and not get into ultimately senseless wars like this current civil war. Where mortals of all races can work together for a greater good." Yew said.

 

"You're picturing the empire." Greta said.

 

"The empire hasn't been that for a long time." Uthgerd said.

 

"Exactly. I don't know what the true answer is. I'm only an initiate. Maybe the empire needs to be reformed. Maybe it needs to be destroyed and something new must take it's place. I just have an idea of what the world should look like. If you agree, maybe, while we are busy putting out all kinds of fires, we could strive for that as well." Yew said.

 

"That sounds good to me. I'm a true nord, but I'm no Stormcloak fanatic. I'd rather work with other races then fight with them, unless I need to. Like those Thalmor dogs. Those bastards need a good beating at best." Uthgerd said.

 

"I agree with the general sentiments of Uthgerd. I'd like to help too." Greta said.

 

"Good. Do you have any other questions?" Yew said.

 

"Your order doesn't practice anything...creepy does it?" Uthgerd said.

 

"It depends on what you'd classify as creepy. We don't perform sacrifices of men or mer or beastfolk." Yew said.

 

"Then why keep things so secret...just wondering." Greta said.

 

"Our rites are sacred. We don't necessarily want outsiders viewing them. In the past, our services were more open and our order was all but extinguished by other groups. We have learned from our mistakes and adapted and expanded our order for the modern world." Yew said.

 

"So your not just repeating the past. You're trying to compete with the other faiths and magical orders." Greta said.

 

"Yes. In a manner of speaking." Yew said. 

 

"Politics is complicated." Uthgerd said.

 

"It is. Which is why it's a shame that's the game we will need to play." Yew said.

 

"What do you mean?" Greta said.

 

"After we track down that bandit leader for the Jarl, I'm going to have to increase my influence at court. Become a player. I need coin and information to complete my objectives here." Yew said.

 

"I see. Then we shall help however we can." Greta said.

 

"Aye." Uthgerd said.

 

"We should figure out the bed situation, before it gets too late." Yew said.

 

The three talked for a bit and it was decided that for the evening, Uthgerd would sleep in a chair and Yew and Greta would sleep in the bed. It was chaste, but Yew couldn't help but get a little excited by the notion and it took him longer than usual to fall asleep.

 

When he did fall asleep he saw his character sheet. He had leveled up his speech skill, as well as his Lore skill. Yew was pretty sure his knowledge of the world, in general, was represented by Lore and he had increased that through his various conversations over the course of the day. A few others seemed to gain some experiance, but not much else had changed. 

 

Breakfast wasn't bad. Most of the patrons didn't stay overnight, and those who did were either fellow adventurers grabbing a bite before heading out or people too hungover to make much of a fuss. 

 

"Ha, did you three get a single room? Because I wasn't sure that was quite the nature of your realtionship." Jasmine said. 

 

"Yourself and Freya got the same room, should we make the same assumptions about your realtionship?" Yew shot back.

 

"I wish." Jasmine said with a shrug. 

 

"What do you three have planned for today?" Freya asked.

 

"Getting our supplies already and in order and setting out to track Noctis Tharn. Hopefully, we can take down the bastard quickly. A couple of days, maybe." Yew said.

 

"Good luck with that." Jasmine said.

 

"What about you two?" Greta asked.

 

"Freya's going to the Companions. I'll be playing at a couple of establishments to make my name as a bard." Jasmine said.

 

"Well, good luck with that yourself. We should stay in contact. We'll you be basing yourself out of the Bannered Mare when it gets up and running?" Yew said.

 

"Yes, until then it's the Laughing Maid for us. But really I have ownership of Breezehome. It's nearby Adrienne's blacksmithy. You can always check in there or with the Jarl if you can't find us elsewhere." Jasmine said.

 

Yew, Uthgerd and Greta didn't have a lot on their shopping list. Mostly they just needed some food for the trip, and to make sure each of them had a good stock of potions. However Yew wanted to make sure to check on what magical aid Farengar could offer. The staff he had picked up and the spell tome had been quite indecipherable to him and he needed the items identified. 

 

"Hm. This staff is a staff of Sparks. It could be of some use to you or the priestess. The spell tome is a ward you can cast on allies. Which again might be usful for the priestess." Farengar informed the party. 

 

"Ah I see that could come in handy. You think you'll be able to learn this Ward spell Greta?" Yew asked, handing her the tome. She looked it over.

 

"Y-yeah. I think I'll be able to. You should probably take the staff, since your better at offensive magic I think it will be of greater use to you." Greta said.

 

"Alright." Yew said with a nod. 

 

"I don't know if I can offer much else to your party at this time. Perhaps later." Farengar said.

 

"We'll keep checking in. Thanks for the help." Yew said. 

 

The three of them, as well as Yew's wolf, were out of the city a little afternoon.

 

They spent most of the afternoon slowly leaving the city limits, interrogating the stablemaster and various guards along the way to get a good grasp of where Tharn and his crew had ran off too. 

 

The verdict was that they were heading east, in the general direction of Riften. Which seemed the most logical place for a group of bandits to take refuge in, considering by all accounts, it was a den of thieves.

 

"If they arrive...the thieves guild or the Blackbriars might offer them protection for exchange for some services." Greta said.

 

"Does that happen regularly?" Yew asked.

 

"Yes. Though in the case of the Thieves guild they generally don't sponsor murder, but they are willing to use murders for intimidation, protection or other aid." Greta said. 

 

"Then we'll just have to stop them before they arrive in Riften." Yew said.

 

Yew's wolf, had picked up on the scent of the bandits during the fight, and thanks to Yew's deeper understanding of his animal companion, he was able to lead Yew in a more precise direction.

 

Thus the pursuit began.


	24. Chapter 24

They set up camp at evening, and ate dinner along the main road.

"Do you intend to take them alive or dead?" Uthgerd said.

"That depends on them." Yew said.

"I get that. But what will you be trying to do?" Uthgerd said.

"Depends on the circumstances as well. They are dangerous. And I prioritize your lives and the lives of innocent over the lives of bandits. If it looks like it'll be a fight to the death, I'll treat it like that. But I will look for opportunities to capture them. I think I'd like to ask them some questions." Yew said.

"Like why they attacked the Bannered Mare." Greta said.

"Exactly." Yew said.

That night Yew couldn't help but to pleasure himself to keep his lust under control. He thought of both of his companions, both very different, but both quite appealing in their own way. He felt a little bad about it, but his self-control could only be so strong.

Falling asleep, Yew once again saw his character sheet. His Speech skill had gained some experience, as had Druidism (likely from utilizing his connection with his wolf), as well as Survivalism and Tracking which gained level ups. He was making good progress to his next general level up, but it would take a bit.

That morning they had a quick breakfast, tore down their camp and headed back on the pursuit. The bandits were a good deal ahead of them, so they couldn't waste much more time if they expected to intercept them.

It wasn't long before the party came across a tower built right next to a bridge. Outside there were a few nordic men, dressed in furs and leathers.

Yew expected danger. His hands tingled a bit, and electricity worked it's way down his spine. Part of him was eagar for a fight, part of him was damn terrified.

"Hold." A gruff voice shouted out as they got close enough to the group of men.

"Alright then. We don't want any trouble. We are just making our way." Yew said.

"That's the reason why you've gotta hold." A sharper, younger sounding voice said.

"That's right. This is our road and this is our bridge. Either way you've gotta pay the toll to make it across either." The gruff-voiced man said again. He seemed to be the leader and was taller by at least a head then all of his other, considerably intimidating men.

"Pay a toll huh? And what if we refuse?" Yew said.

.

""Then you leave back the way you came from." The man said.

"By what right do you own this bridge, this road? Should it not be the property of all who live and travel in this land?" Uthgerd asked.

"We own it through force of arms good lady." Said another voice. It was an older man with streaks of grey in his beard and two scars across his face. His voice sounded surprisingly gentle.

"Is that how law works here in Skyrim?" Yew asked.

"Yes, in all lands that war touches." Greta said.

"The little lady has it half right. That's how the law works in all lands. War torn or no." The gruff voiced man said.

"Alright then. How much is this toll?" Yew asked.

"You don't mean to give him our gold?" Uthgerd said. Yew gave her a meaningful look and she let out a grunt of acquiescence.

"A modest fee, I'm sure for adventures such as you. 1000 gold, I'd say." The gruff-voiced man said

"That's an outrageous fee. Simply to use the road unmolested..." Greta said.

"You don't have to pay all in gold, if you don't have the coin. We'll take goods equal to that amount as well." The gruff voiced man said.

"Do you extract such a fee over all such travelers?" Yew asked.

"Not as such. We take what we believe the travelers can afford, it's only fair. We need to eat, and they need to cross the road." the older, kind voiced man said.

"Travelers have to eat too." Yew said.

"The land is bountiful. Let them take what they need from it." The Gruff voiced man said.

"It's riddled with war and monsters, and many people are not as strong as you lot." Yew said.

"That's enough talk. Give us the coin or go home." The gruff voiced man said.

"I can't go home. Neither can I give you the coin. I can't much afford it. Nor can I be stripped for my valuables, and I wouldn't be worth anything as a leader if I let my companions be robbed." Yew said.

"What are you intending to do then." The sharp voiced man said.

"Well, I'm intending on busting up your operation. Through force, if necessary." Yew said.

"I have no desire to kill you or your companions." The gruff-voiced man said.

"I have no desire to kill any of you either, truth be told. However, I need to pass. And I don't like the idea of you keeping hold of this tower and road. Seems to me to be a recipe for disaster." Yew said. He didn't need to be the one to put an end to these bandits. After all, city guards or Imperial Legionnares or Stormcloaks were bound to put an end to them at some point.

But he did want the experience points. Any bit of training could help, and besides a fight could be exhilarating. There were only five of them. Yew was pretty sure they could take them.

"Well, that's a problem. We can't let you inform anyone that we're here." The gruff voiced man said.

Weapons were drawn, including those of his companions.

"Boys, boys. Can't we work something else out? Like maybe you leave and never hurt anyone again? Or maybe you could help us track down another group of outlaws? You could earn a way to buy off your bounty and lead a better life." Yew said.

"Tempting. But I don't see how any of that would work." The Gruff voiced man said.

"Well, I tried." Yew said and cast Piercing Thorn. It hit the gruff-voiced man in the chest as he charged forward, but he kept coming. Slashing at Yew as Yew dodged backwards.

Yew sent another thorn racing into the gruff-voiced man's belly. His armor was good enough that this still wasn't sufficient. The Gruff voiced man hit Yew with a gloved fist, knocking Yew to the ground. The bandit leader tried to follow through with a stab, but Yew managed to dodge that. Then Yew sent another thorn into the bandit's torso.

The bandit staggered back, blood trickling from his mouth.

"I'm not going to die today, because of a little bitch like you." The bandit leader said, as Yew scrambled to his feet and drew his bow.

"You sure about that?" Yew said, notching an arrow.

"Damn it..." The gruff voiced man said. He turned to run. Yew sent an arrow into his neck, and he fell dead to the ground.

Uthgerd was taking on two men, one of them being the sharp voiced man, and another being a man who didn't speak. Greta was fighting with a man with an axe and a long blonde beard.

Uthgerd played a defensive game, waiting until the silent bandit had exhausted himself before sticking her sword in his belly. Then she focused on the sharp voiced man who was a harder opponent. He was armed with a sword and shield and was a bit quicker then Uthgerd, allowing him to hit Uthgerd with some glancing blows.

Uthgerd wouldn't win a defensive game against him. She had to strike hard. So she decided to target his shield. Striking it and striking it until it splintered and he let go of it remains. Then she slashed the man nearly in two with her greatsword.

Greta was trading blows with the man with the blonde beard, for every two blows she'd land on him, he'd secure a more severe wound on her. This pace was only sustained by Greta's healing and defensive magic, otherwise, she would have been killed already.

Yew aimed as carefully as he could with his bow and waited until he had a clear shot, then he took it, getting another shot in the jugular and ending his life near instantly.

Greta fell to her knees in relief.

"Th-thank you." Greta said.

"No problem." Yew said. He was a bit frustrated at that performance. He should have been able to control the course of the battle better, but as it was, his companions faced quite a lot of danger that to his mind was unnecessary.

However, another thing hit him harder. There were supposed to be five men, not four, and his wolf had disappeared.

Yew closed his eyes and concentrated, the wolf was still alive and still around this general area, but he couldn't quite place where.

"Are you well?" Uthgerd said.

"Yes. I'm fine. We need to find my wolf." Yew said.

"Might have taken off when the fighting started. One of the bandits did." Uthgerd said.

"Yeah, I noticed that as well. I don't mind if one bandit escapes. As long as it's not with my wolf." Yew said.

An arrow went flying between Yew and Greta. Yew turned his gaze towards the tower. A one-eyed man was taking aim with his good eye. He sent the second flying as Yew notched an arrow and then loosed it. Greta took an arrow in the side. The man who fired the shot took one in the chest and collapsed against the tower wall.

"Greta." Yew and Uthgerd said and both went to check on Greta.

"I...I don't know if I can fix this on my own." Greta said though. Her voice weak and panicked.

"Don't worry. I have potions that can help." Yew said.

"Are you ready?" Uthgerd asked, her hand on the arrow. Greta took a deep breath.

"Y-Yes." The priestess said. Uthgerd took out the arrow and blood spurted from it. Greta put her hand on the wound and tried healing it as best she could. Then she drank a potion that Yew gave her.

"Ah...it feels good." Greta said after she finished the potion, but her voice wasn't much stronger.

"I'll take the rest of the tower. You keep Greta safe." Yew said.

"I should be with you, in case there's more of them." Uthgerd said.

"I can handle myself." Yew said.

"You sure about that? Aren't you just an initiate?" Uthgerd said.

"I've stayed alive so far. And I've gotten stronger. I've got all the resources I need to defeat any opponent. At least any that a group of bandits could offer me." Yew said.

"Fine. But if you need my help, call out." Uthgerd said.

Yew nodded. He put away his bow and took out his dagger. He had his staff on his back, but he felt more comfortable with utilizing his cantrips for the moment.

Yew went up the stairs of the tower to the second floor. Two bandits lay in wait there. Yew was able to use acid splash to blind the first bandit and ended him by slitting his throat.

The next bandit raced towards him with a shout. He quickly knocked the dagger out of Yews hands and slashed Yew twice before Yew could dodge. Reacting as fast as Yew could he sent another Acid Splash to blind the bandit and while he was desperately clawing at his face, Yew ended him with a Piercing thorn.

Yew picked up his dagger and moved on. He would have enough time to rifle through the bandit's supplies after he was done clearing this place out. Yew drank a health potion and felt his wounds stitch back together. He still felt a bit weak but he couldn't wait for long.

The druid headed to the top of the tower. There he saw a man in full iron plate with a fur cloak. Behind him was a woman in leather armor. She was tanned and looked like she might be an Imperial. She had a hand ax over her back as well as a shield, and a sword and a dagger at her hips.

"Well, well, our guest has arrived." The woman said.

"You knew I was coming." Yew said.

"Of course. You made quite the racket. If you were trying for stealth, it's not your bag." The woman said.

"I admit that isn't my area of expertise. Then again I really didn't want to spend today cutting through a bunch of bandits. Right now I just want to now where my wolf is." Yew said.

"Couldn't tell you about any wolves." The woman said.

"Then I shall take my leave." Yew said and began to withdraw. A dagger stuck itself in the wall, barely missing his skull.

"I'm sorry but I can't exactly let you leave." The woman said.

Yew kept running towards the door, but hit an invisible barrier.

"What the...?" Yew muttered.

Then he just managed to get away from a sword that would have cleaved his head wide open. It was a sword wielded two handed

by the large man in the steal plate.

"It's a shame but I wouldn't have much of a reputation if I let you live after all you've done." She said.

"You're not likely to, if me and mine are able to massacre you with relatively no trouble, you'd be hopeless dealing with more experienced adventurers." Yew said.

"An interesting theory. What would you propose I do instead, if my situation is so hopeless." The woman said.

"Allow me to hire you as mercenaries. We'll be stronger together than on our own and we can grow our strengths. Once you get what you want out of our realtionship, you can leave and go about whatever path in life you choose." Yew said.

"A fascinating offer. How much can you pay us?" The woman said, and the man put away his sword.

"Well, for one all the gold on the men that have fallen to us today, you can have." Yew said.

"Mighty generous of you." The woman said.

"That's not all. Each of you will get 25 gold a day and anything we find along the way will be divided 40-60, with the three of us getting 60% of anything we find and you getting 40%. We are also on our way to collect a bounty. If you accompany us through our mission and the collection, then you will receive half of what we get from that. Sound fair?" Yew said.

"That depends. Whose this bounty on?" The woman asked.

"Just some Breton bandit who launched a raid on the Bannered Mare in Whiterun, along with his pet mage and a nord warrior." Yew said, trying to play it cool.

"...Ok then. We'll come along." The woman said.

"I appreciate that. Now if we could get going-" Yew said.

"Hold it. I have one additional condition. Gunther, leave us for a moment." The woman said. The man, Gunther apparently, grunted and brushed past Yew to leave.

"What's the meaning of this?" Yew asked.

"Pretty boys like you tend to only be good at one thing. And I'll need to take advantage." The woman said, taking off her trousers.

"Uh...this...we've just met." Yew said, but his hands were sweaty and his body was tingly and warm and he was so hard.

"I know, and in my experience it's best to solidify one's bonds with sex." The woman said.

"I...don't even know your name." Yew said.

"It's Sophia. Nice to meet you." The woman said and her underwear fell to her feet.

"Now then. Eat me out." She said spreading her legs.

"You make a compelling argument." Yew said.

Before Yew even knew he was moving he was in between Sophia's legs. He felt and heard her cum and when she did he felt himself tip over the edge as well.

"Ah. I see that silver tongue of yours is good for something." Sophia said patting Yew on the head.

"Oh and you've finished just from that. Yeah, I think you and I will get along real nicely." Sophia said, pulling her trousers back on.

"Come on. Let's get going." Sophia said.

Yew adjusted himself and headed out after her. He was feeling a bit better, but he knew it wouldn't be long before his lust grew walking behind Sophia told him that. Her ass was fantastic.

Yew was the one that went down the stairs first. He needed to make sure Uthgerd wouldn't kill their newfound allies. The others would gather up the bandits supplies.

"Well, I've got some news for you." Yew said.

"What's that?' Uthgerd said.

"I've gotten some new friends. Though they will be expecting payment." Yew said.

"I see. Can we really trust them?" Uthgerd muttered.

"I think so. They didn't seem too affectionate about their lost comrades, and I made them a good offer." Yew said.

"But stay vigiliant." Yew added.

"Alright then, Gunther, Sophia, you can come on down." Yew said.

The two headed down the stairs and took their places.

"Sorry about the fight you had to go through. We just thought this would be the best way to make money off the civilwar without anybody getting hurt. Seems like that was a false hope." Sophia said.

"Seems so." Greta said.

"The old man. He's gone and so is my wolf. You have any idea where he could be?" Yew asked.

"Where would any bandit or thief go when in need? To Riften." Sophia said.

"Then all the more reason to continue our journey. Onwards." Yew said.

And thus the awkward party continued onward. On the road to Riften.


	25. Chapter 25

"How do you know your wolf is still alive?" Sophia said.

 

"I can sense him. And I know he's close." Yew said.

 

"Ah, with magic I'm guessing. Always wanted to learn a bit of the art myself. Never got the chance." Sophia said.

 

"Yes. Specifically, I'm a druid, and members of our order can cultivate bonds with animals." Yew said.

 

"And yet you haven't named your wolf yet?" Sophia said.

 

"A name hasn't presented itself. Once it does, I'll call him by it." Yew said.

 

"Fair enough." Sophia responded. 

 

"You're an Imperial right?" Uthgerd asked.

 

"Yes." Sophia said.

 

"What brought you up here? Don't seem like a second generation." Uthgerd said.

 

"I came here to start a new life. You can probably tell how that turned out." Sophia said.

 

"Well...your with us now. We can help you out." Greta said.

 

"Thanks, Priestess. But I don't know if that will truly be enough." Sophia said. 

 

They passed beneath the shadow of the throat of the world. The day unfolded fairly peacefully, considering all that had happened that morning. Sophia seemed surprisingly willing to talk. Yew was pretty sure he'd read some stories with characters like her, and they typically were a bit more standoffish then this. This was an odd world he had fallen into and he wasn't exactly sure how to approach it. Like a game? Like a story? And what kind of game? What kind of story? 

 

In any case, he knew he'd have to prioritize his growth and survival, as well as that of his party. Yew longed for sleep, not because he was tired, but because he wanted to level up. He was sure he had made some progress over the events of that day. 

 

Yew hadn't let up on his tracking. Guided initially by his instincts toward the general location of his wolf, he soon spotted wolf tracks alongside a set of boots. Likely to be those of a grown man. They had been following those for about two hours when they stumbled upon a hut, a ways off the beaten track.

 

"So this is where that old man set up camp." Sophia asked.

 

"It would appear so. Do you think there will be trouble?" Yew asked. Sophia shrugged.

 

"I doubt it. But if he does he won't have a chance. He's a skilled enough fighter, but not good enough to make up for the numbers advantage." Sophia said.

 

"Good to know." Yew said. He went up and knocked on the door. To Yew's surprise, the door actually opened to show the older man from the tower.

 

 

"Ah. I see you've found me. Guessing you've come to an accord with Sophia?" The older man said.

 

"We've been hired." Sophia said.

 

"Good. Good. Well, come in. Your wolf missed you." The Older man said. 

 

 

Inside the room was Yew's wolf, safe and sound, gnawing on a bone. 

 

"Always was good with animals. In my experience, they tend to be a lot easier to deal with than people, even the mean ones." The older man said, as he took a seat near the house's hearth.

 

"I'm inclined to agree. Now then, could you explain to me why you ran off with my wolf?" Yew asked.

 

"Didn't run off with him. The creature followed me. Thought he meant to kill me, so I tossed him some meat. But then he just kept on following." The man said.

 

"I suppose this can be taken as a lack of a harmonious realtionship with my animal companion. Thank you for taking care of him. I'll be taking him off your hands then and we can part ways as friends." Yew said. 

 

"Hold on there. You hired on Sophia and her muscle. What job do you have?" He asked.

 

"We've got a few bandit heads the Jarl of Whiterun wants apprehended. They are making for Riften." Yew said. 

 

"Aye. Alright then. I'd like to offer my services to you. I'll even wait on payment til you get your reward from the Jarl. Man like me has less jobs in front of him then he has behind him. So I'll take what I can get." The older man said.

 

"Sounds fine by me." Yew said and looked over his companions. They all gave the nod. 

 

"Alright then. Let's shake on it." The old man said, and stretched out a hand. Yew shook it.

 

"My names Yew." Yew said.

 

"Oden." The old man said. 

 

"Now then, is this your house?" Yew said looking around. 

 

"Not as such. I found it abandoned a bit ago, seemed freshly abandoned. Probably because of the war. Claimed it as my own." Oden said.

 

"I suppose we might as well bunker down here for the evening. Not going to make much more progress today." Yew said.

 

"It'll be a bit cramped to fit all of us..." Greta said.

 

"I'm willing to sleep under the stars." Yew said.

 

"As am I." Uthgerd said.

 

"Gunther can stay outside as well. Myself, Oden and Greta can stay in here." Sophia said.

 

"Fine by me. My wolf can keep you company." Yew said. He didn't believe the bandits turned mercenary would betray them, but it couldn't hurt to balance out this wolf and sheep puzzle somewhat.

 

Sophia nodded and Greta looked a bit grateful. They all ate dinner together. Shortly afterward, Yew and Uthgerd, accompanied by Gunther, made their way out of the house. 

 

"It's a starry night." Uthgerd said. She'd had a couple of drinks and seemed a bit more open. 

 

"Yeah. It's beautiful." Yew said.

 

"So are you." Uthgerd said. 

 

"Why thank you. You are quite appealing yourself." Yew said.

 

"Coming from you...I believe that. Most men only say such things to use me for relief, not because they are actually interested. But you look at me like I'm something special." Uthgerd said.

 

"You are." Yew said.

 

"I'm glad you have such faith in me." Uthgerd said, her voice sounding more melancholy then her words would imply.

 

"Keep traveling with me and you'll see why I have such faith in you." Yew said. Uthgerd gave Yew a look, then turned away again.

 

"I think I will." Uthgerd said.

 

Yew fell asleep and once again his menu popped up. Druidism and Tracking had leveled up. As had Archery, Tracking, and Speech. Through this, he had achieved a general level up and thus an additional perk.

 

Yew took a look at the list of relevant perks and felt a bit overwhelmed. He wasn't exactly sure what his build should be truth be told. A lot of the perks were utility and there were some different branches he could go down. For instance, he started the avenger perk tree in Druidism. That lead down several different paths that could benefit different aspects of his spell casting. He could become a master of crowd control or he could combine spells for different effects and more. And that was only one potential path of one skill tree.

 

So choosing to rest over figuring out his options, and wanting time to think it over, Yew decided to save his perk. 

 

In the morning, Yew and Uthgard woke up at near the same time. Gunther was already gone. Yew and Uthgard headed back into the hut. The party had breakfast and then headed back out on the road.


	26. Chapter 26

Yew, with his wolf at his side once more, began a more thorough tracking of their prey. The party didn't take many chances. Due to their desire to quickly cut off their targets, they stuck to the main roads and avoided conflict where they could. Occasionally they had to find off desperate highwaymen or even more desperate wild animals. Several days passed. Then several weeks as they made their way through eastern Skyrim. As this was happening Yew gained several levels in Tracking. 

 

As they made their trip the landscape grew increasingly gloomy. They made their way through swamps and woods that seemed dreary even to Yew. 

 

"By the Eight, Skyrim is a nasty place." Sophia said, cleaning her sword after an encounter with a few Falmer. 

 

"It can be a bit brutal in places." Yew said.

 

"I wouldn't want it any other way. Maybe with a bit less war. it's a hard place and hard places make for hard people." Uthgerd said. As they had made their trek they had seen evidence of warfare. Skirmishes her and there that left dozens dead. Burnt down villages. Mer made a grizzly example of. Most of the fighting was minor though. With Whiterun's neutrality preventing the bulk of either sides forces from a cutting through the center of Skyrim. 

 

"I'd prefer a sunny place. Cyrodil had more than enough opportunities for adventure but it was warm and lovely and a girl could get a decent cup of wine." Sophia said.

 

"To each their own then. Just don't try to make us live like you southroners and we will get along fine." Uthgerd said.

 

"Wouldn't dream of it." Sophia said. 

 

Yew had his hands in the pockets of his robes. He wouldn't call the last couple of weeks boring per se, but he was itching for a real challenge. As it was, their party could cope with whatever small groups of enemies opposed them. It did take a bit of the worry out of things, but it also took a bit of the excitement as well. And quite frankly, a lot of the opportunities for growth. Casting a spell or loosing a couple of arrows didn't make for steller experience gains. He longed for some sort of challenge. And was wondering if he was going to have to ditch some of his party to get it.

 

"How far off we from Riften?" Yew asked.

 

"About another week or so." Sophia said. It had been nearly 4 months of constant travel with very few serious slowdowns. 

 

"I see." Yew said.

 

"It would be faster if we had access to some horses. Sadly, those are fairly expensive these days. The armies take as much as they need, and their need is massive." Sophia said.

 

"We shall have to try and secure some horses at Riften, when we arrive." Yew said.

 

It was 5 days later, during the late evening, that Yew received his wish. He was on watch. A duty that he found stressful in spite of how calming those nights often felt. Yew was constantly worried about getting distracted. It was then that he noticed figures approaching in the dark.

 

"Hold. Who goes there?" Yew said and he drew his bow. He had thirty arrows, and all of his spells intact. 

 

"My. My. Such a large group. Do you mean to travel into Riften or to siege it?" Said a voice. It was a smooth-talking Argonian female. She was dressed in black and had several knives tucked into her belt, as well as a short sword on her back.

 

"Travel. We come in peace." Yew said.

 

"Do you? That would be a rare treat. So few travel for peaceful purposes in these times." The Argonian replied.

 

There were many figures gathered alongside and behind her. Yew couldn't count how many. They were wearing black and masked in shadow and darkness.

 

"What is your intention here? To greet travelers?" Yew said.

 

"No, no. Just a certain group of travelers. You see, my mistress has guests here in this city. And it seems that a group of people have come to harm these guests. You don't happen to be that party? You peaceful lot." The Argoinan woman said.

 

Yew had been glancing around as subtly as you could. Not just gauging her parties numbers, which was over 10, but also gauging to see how awake his other party members were. Greta was awake, holding her breath to avoid drawing attention. Uthgerd had a hand on the hilt of the axe she kept on her hip. Sophia also had a hand on the hilt of her sword. Yew had no idea about the others, but that would do.

 

"We aren't intending on hurting anyone. We just want to hand in some brigands to the proper authorities. That is all." Yew said.

 

"Well, that's a lovely idea. Shame it can't be allowed to happen." The Argonian woman said. As she finished her sentence an arrow just barely missed Yew's head. 

 

Suddenly chaos unfolded. All of Yew's companions were quickly on their feet and making a stand. Greta was firing off warding spells and other defensive and supportive magic. Yew sent an arrow towards the Argonian woman but he missed as she retreated back into the darkness. Yew sent two other arrows into the necks of a couple of their archers. But a third archer managed to connect and hit Yew right in the arm.

 

Yew sent a piercing thorn that killed the archer that fired the arrow but it was too late. Yew's left arm was crippled and worthless. He wouldn't be able to use a bow.

 

With a cry Yew sent forth his vile thorns and killed three more of the Argonian's goons. At this point they were charging in forth, moving to overwhelm the Yew's companions formed a wall and began to defend their camp. The fighters that the Argonian sent against them were lightly armed and armored and they seemed lightly trained as well. Sophia and Uthgard, in particular, were carving through them like a knife through butter. 

 

Yew mostly relied on his piercing thorns, he crippled an opponent with tanglefoot and ended him with another piercing thorn. He used slicing leaves to cut the throats of several members of horde. 

 

However their numbers were too much, and they managed to beat down and beat down the party, not letting up for a second. Blood flowed freely from each side.

 

When it finally ended 18 people were dead at their feet, probably around 18 had fled, and they all had various wounds from the sheer force of the horde's onslaught.

 

"By Kynreath that was...that was." Greta said falling to her knees exhausted and panicked.

 

"It was scary as Oblivion." Yew said, his hands were shaking, but it wasn't fear he was feeling. Not exactly. 

 

"Yeah. And exciting." Uthgerd said.

 

"It was a perfect night. All I need is a fuck and a bit of booze." Sophia said. 

 

Greta and some potions fixed up their wounds, though Yew's arm was still sore and stiff. When it was Sophia's turn on watch she woke Yew up and had him go down on her. Then she gave him a handjob. It felt fumbling and a bit frenzied, and Yew could barely remember it outside of a blur the next day. But it was a pleasant blur. 

 

Four days later they had arrived at Riften.


	27. Chapter 27

Yew and his party arrived outside of Riften's gates at evening. There were two guards out front, and several on the walls. Yew walked forward first, leaving his companions a bit behind. 

 

"Hold. State your business here." A nord guard said. He was young and blonde. Not bad looking for a guard. Had a bit of a pretty face in fact. Though Yew was used to encountering unusually attractive people just walking about. 

 

"Myself and my group are intending on getting some more supplies." Yew said.

 

"None of you are Imperial spies are you?" The guard said.

 

"No. In fact I suspect the Empire wants us hanged." Yew said.

 

"What for?" The guard said.

 

"Crimes committed against them. As well as being heretics in their eyes. We have common cause with you Stormcloaks." Yew said. 

 

"Ha. You look like a formidable lot. Maybe you should join up with Ulfric's Army. Windhelm's not too far away from here. You can pledge fealty to him there and help the cause." The guard said.

 

"I'll consider it. Now if you'll excuse me, my party needs to get some rest." Yew said. 

 

"Hold up there Breton. We are going to need more than your word." The guard said. He had gotten in Yew's way.

 

"Well then...what can I do to prove to you my loyalty? You look pretty tense. And I do know ways of relieving such tension." Yew said. The suggestiveness of such a statement being fairly clear. Yew was leaning hard on his speech skill here. Which was a bit of a gamble. Compared to other skills, he hadn't had that much cause to utilize it of late. Mostly just with his traveling companions and with fellow wanderers they had encountered on the road. Still, most of his skills weren't exactly suited for this kind of thing. He didn't want to engage in combat with the city guard.

 

The pretty boy guard glanced over Yew. They were close to each other. Nearly touching in fact. He had a chest broader then Yew's lanky frame and was a few inches taller. 

 

"You are a pretty thing aren't you Breton?" The guard said.

 

"Hold up there boy. We take our payments in gold." His older scarred companion said.

 

"You can take your payments how you like. I get enough gold to get by. What I don't get enough is is worthwhile company." The pretty guard said.

 

"Oh, I see. Been getting a bit lonely? I can certainly help with that." Yew said.

 

"Knew you were a bloody invert. Your kind never should be allowed in any organization, save for a jail cell." The older man growled. He stepped closer, his hand straying for the dagger on his belt. 

 

"Careful now. There are some fairly important people walking around that might be offended by your comments. I of course, know it's all in jest." The younger guard said, his hand on his sword hilt.

 

"You think you can get away with anything cause you have a better than average sword-arm. I'll report your sexual extortion to the Lawgiver who'll-" But the older man never finished his sentence. The fool had gotten too close and there was a spurt of crimson before he fell to the ground. Never to rise. Yew looked from the pretty man with the crimson sword upwards to the guards on the wall.

 

The guards atop the wall looked casual, as if nothing interesting or unusual had happened.

 

"Oh dear. It seems my watch partner has died." The pretty guard called out, drying his sword with a cloth. 

 

"Terribly reckless of him to go on patrol alone. A brigand must have snuffed him out." A guard called from atop the wall.

 

"Yes. Truly tragic." The pretty guard called back out, while staring at Yew.

 

"Shame I couldn't help him." Yew said.

 

"He was well hated among the guards. Took too much for himself. Beat too many younger guards around. Reported to many guards who pissed him off to our Jarl. Now tell me, what's your name beautiful stranger." The pretty guard said.

 

"My name is Yew, like the tree. How about yours?" Yew asked.

 

"Lowe. It's a pleasure to meet you." Lowe said.

 

"Well then Lowe, You seemed to have gotten my robes all dirty." Yew said, referring to the droplets of blood on his robes.

 

"Guess we shall have to get those off of you." Lowe said.

 

Yew gave his companions a signal to tell them to wait. Then Lowe took Yew into the guardhouse. Shortly after he began kissing Yew, his hands straying down Yew's bac and grabbing his backside. Yew melted at his touch and eventually responded by groping his ass as well. Soon Yew's robes were off and bit by bit Lowe's armor. Yew wasn't disappointed by the large cock that sprang out at him, it had to be 8 or 9 inches. Yew immediately went to his knees and began licking and sucking that monster.

 

 

Lowe turned Yew around and started fucking his ass. Yew moved his hips back against Lowe as his bottom jiggled. It was only a matter of time before Lowe came and that sent off Yew as well. 

 

"By the nine you have the arse of a woman, only difference being I enjoy mounting it." Lowe said as he extracted himself from Yew. 

 

"Thanks. I think. I uh...might have difficulties sitting down after that." Yew said. 

 

"Sorry about that. I may have gotten overly excited." Lowe said.

 

"No. Believe me. You did well." Yew said. 

 

"Would you care to do this again. If you are staying in the city. It's hard to find a decent man who isn't either thoroughly complicated, unreliable or dead within a few weeks in this Oblivion pit of a city." Lowe asked.

 

"I can't promise to be uncomplicated or reliable, but I'd sure be interested in doing this again." Yew said.

 

Yew cleaned his robe of blood as Lowe did the same with his sword. Then Yew claimed his companions and walked back into the city.

 

You fucked that man didn't you?" Sophia asked as they made their way into the city.

 

"Yes." Yew responded simply. Greta blushed, Uthgerd stared with a sort of fascination, Sophia merely smirked. Yew's male companions paid this no mind.

 

"How was he?" Sophia said.

 

"Good. He had an impressive cock. He treated me well." Yew said. 

 

"Well then. Time to buy some drinks and celebrate." Sophia said.

 

The party made it over to the Bee and Barb. As Yew predicted he did have some discomfort sitting down but he was able to numb it somewhat with mead. Sophia bombarded Yew with questions as Greta listened intently and Uthgerd pretended not to be much interested. 

 

Eventually Uthgerd did speak up.

 

"You bed with both men and women is that right?" Uthgerd said.

 

"Yes. It is so." Yew replied.

 

"You behave somewhat feminine and have an almost feminine body. Is this...common in High Rock?" Uthgerd said.

 

"No. More common perhaps in Skyrim. But...none of this is typical." Yew said.

 

"Were you ever...ridiculed for it? Mocked?" Uthgerd said.

 

"Certainly. Many boys mocked me as I grew. When I was a teen, my first lover's sister would slap me, mock me to my face and cast cruel spells on me because she thought I wasn't good enough for her sister. I acquired many mocking nicknames and was humiliated more times then I can count. But their mockery did little to prevent me from working to achieve my goals. I am here now. And when I go back I will be more powerful than any of those who used to tease me. And all the happier as well." Yew said.

 

"Thank you for your honesty. I faced such abuses when I was young too. Most of those people don't have any teeth." Uthgerd said.

 

Sophia gave him a curious look. 

 

A couple drinks later and Yew's arousal had returned and he was getting curious how sex with an Argonain would go. Sophia cut him off and bought them a room. She took him there, nearly dragging him.

 

"Gods, you are really gorgeous." Yew said, through slightly slurred words. 

 

"I supposed that your little boy is as long and hard as it gets huh. Very well then." Sophia said and pulled off Yew's robes.

 

"There there. Sit your cute little-who am I kidding-big arse on the bed. I've got a treat for you." Sophia said.

 

"S-sounds fun." Yew said doing as he was bid.

 

Sophia turned around and began shaking her hips and ass. She had a very large backside that had not gotten any smaller on the road. A fact which greatly pleased the druid. She moved with a good deal of dexterity, especially considering her curvaceous derriere. She began tearing off pieces of her clothing. First her top, which exposed her perky, delightful breasts, then her leather leggings, which exposed a panty-clad rear. Her panties were trying hard to contain her massive bottom, but it was little use, and her cheeks jiggled pleasingly. Soon they were removed as well leaving Sophia fully exposed and fully nude.

 

Sophia beckoned Yew and he crawled his way towards her, sticking his face into her crotch and began eating her out. She moaned her way to an orgasm and then returned the favor, sticking her knuckles in Yew's ass and jerking off his cock. He moaned as he laid his head on Sophia's shoulders and took the pleasure. He came on Sophia's belly and she could feel tears fall on her shoulders as he nuzzled into her.

 

"Th-thank you. That was...so satisfying." Yew said

 

"It's alright my flower." Sophia said, stroking his hair.

She carted him to bed and they fell asleep shortly thereafter.


	28. Chapter 28

Yew woke up in bed alone. A fact that disappointed him. He had at least wanted to see Sophia leave. That always gave him a great view. Sophia had left out a note for him. A simple one just stating that he wasn't to worry and that she was going to be down in the dining area of the Bee and Barb. 

 

Yew got ready for the day, then headed down to the dining area himself.

 

"You're a pretty one Greta, yet I haven't seen you fuck anyone since we've been on the road together. Why's that? Don't tell me that you've taken some vow of chastity." Sophia said.

 

"N-no. Kynereath doesn't ask that of us. I...simply haven't had many options." Greta said.

 

"Really. There were quite a few good looking traders and hunters of both genders out and about. I wager some of them would have been interested in you." Sophia said.

 

"Perhaps, but I wouldn't be interested in such a fling." Greta said.

 

"How about with one of your traveling companions? I'm here, Uthgerds here, Gunther's here, Yew's here." Sophia said with a smile, inclining her head to Yew, who finally decided to join them at the table. Greta was blushing. 

 

"I am here. And always available for close intimate relationships with my companions." Yew said. This didn't do much to stop Greta's blushing. 

 

"I...well. You two seemed so close for one thing." Greta said barely able to speak.

 

"You think I'm going to be exclusive with one man? Even a pretty Breton like him? No way in Oblivion." Sophia said. 

 

"I'm not exclusive either. Monogamy isn't precisely my thing." Yew said.

 

"I...I see." Greta said. Evantually it was decided that the girls would head into town to replenish the supplies that they were running low on. The boys were to hang out and talk to people coming into the inn and gather information. Well it boiled down to Yew and Oden doing the talking, Gunther was there for back up.

 

"Finally think I got your tastes in women." Oden said, raising his cup to his mouth.

 

"Oh yes? What is that?" Yew asked.

 

"You like women with big asses. Greta's got a nice big ass, Uthgerds got a big ass, Sophia has a huge backside. That's what ties it all together." Oden said.

 

"Well, I do like women with bountiful backsides, I agree with that darling. But I don't know if that's the connecting tissue." Yew said.

 

"Your as dangerous as that wolf you have by your side, only with magic and a bow. So how come you act in such a way. What's your game?" Oden said.

 

"There is no game, dear Oden. I am merely doing what comes naturally." Yew said.

 

"Naturally? There's nothing natural about what you do. It's a show. I'm an old man and I've seen much, but never someone quite like you." Oden said.

 

"I can't testify to what you've seen. Simply consider this, what if the show is what's natural? What if the only way a person can live comfortably in their skin is to project what makes them differently as loud as possible? What if they can't be any other way without that seeming fake? There are many possibilities to life. That's what makes it so fascinating." Yew said.

 

"Aye. I suppose your right." Oden said.

 

"You were testing me just then, weren't you?" Yew said.

 

"Don't know what you're talking about, druid. Not that clever or into such games." Oden said, but his eyes were sparkling

 

They heard some interesting rumors that day. Apparently Ulfric and the rest of the Stormcloaks were growing impatient with Whiterun's neutrality. According to those rumors, Ulfric's patience would have a limit and if Baalgruf didn't choose his side, Ulfric would consider him a traitor to his cause and lay siege to Whiterun. 

 

They also heard whispers of the thieves guild. How it's begun to make a bit of a comeback and solidify it's control over the city, alongside the corrupt nobility. It was even beginning to spread it's tentacles outward from the city. 

 

"Looks like this city has bigger problems then a couple of bandits." Oden said.

 

"You may well be right. But that's none of our business. At least not for now." Yew said.

 

"And yet in a city that rejoices to harbor cutthroats and brigands and thieves. We seem to be turning up few leads." Oden said.

 

"Yes. But it is typical in such endavors that it takes a couple days of digging. Bandits being treated well by the local thieves must be unusual, even for Riften. Someone will have noticed, and someone will let it slip." Yew said.

 

"I hope your right. Otherwise we'll have to comb the city brick by brick and I don't savor our chances at avoiding a knife to the back that way." Oden said.

 

"One step at a time. Won't do us good to think of a fate we might well avoid." Yew said.

 

"What fate is that exactly?" Said Keerava, the Argonian owner of the Bee and Barb. She was female and despite Yew knowing that an anthropomorphic lizard woman shouldn't be sexy, Yew couldn't help but find her oddly appealing.

 

"A grievous death. Or perhaps imprisonment. Is there much of a slave trade here in Skyrim. Don't answer that, bad question. I just fear that our actions here might cause a stir among the criminal community of this city." Yew said.

 

"Your going to cause trouble with them?" Keevara said. Oden's hand strayed subtly to a dagger he kept hidden. Gunther never took a hand far from one of his weapons.

 

"Yes." Yew said.

 

"Good. Those bastards think they can walk all over us. Elsewhere they are weak, but here...they are strong and getting stronger." Keevara said.

 

"We shall try our best to get one over on them. Trust me." Yew said. She gave Yew a hard look. Then she seemed to shrug.

 

"Good luck then." Keevara said. Then she went away. I noticed the sway in her hips with some satisfaction.

 

"By the Nine, you like Argonians too? It's going to take a lot to nail you down isn't it?" Oden said.

 

"Perhaps your right." Yew said.

 

"Unbroken...what kind of name is that?" Sophia asked Uthgerd as they made their way around the city. 

 

"Never been beaten in a fight." Uthgerd said.

 

"Bullshit. Everyone has. Everyones lost when they were learning. Everyones gotten into a barfight and woken up the next day with a pounding head and numerous cuts and bruises. Everyone has had a swordsman that had you dead to rights but let you live because they were so far ahead of you they didn't need to worry. Everyone has lost more than a few sparring matches. The best fighters had to lose the most without dying. A woman like you had to lose a lot to learn to rely on more than sheer strength,otherwise you'd be dead." Sophia said.

 

"Your right. That's not why." Uthgerd said.

 

"Oh. I see. It's because you're a virgin. A maid." Sophia said.

 

"Is that a problem?" Uthgerd said, her jaw tightening slightly.

 

"Not at all. But it does explain a lot. I'd be as aggressive as you if I hadn't gotten a good fucking." Sophia said.

 

"So-Sophia..." Greta said.

 

"Do you want me to knock the teeth out of your head." Uthgerd said.

 

"Sorry. That was...unworthy. I should just ask you if this is a...condition you are alright with." Sophia said.

 

"It is what it is. I struggled with finding anyone that would...take me. The few offers I got were...repulsive to me. I could find someone with the right coin, but it's been so long that I just decided to wait until I found someone I respected." Uthgerd said.

 

"And what if you never find someone worthy of your maidenhead?" Sophia asked.

 

"Then I'll die a virgin or I'll give up and buy someone with coin. It has nothing to do with modesty or chastity is just is what it is." Uthgerd said.

 

"I find it hard to believe that no one would..." Greta began. Uthgerd and Sophia immediately turned to her.

 

"S-sorry I'm thinking outloud. Forget it." Greta said.

 

"Finish your thought. Please." Uthgerd said.

 

"I mean...you are a very strong woman. Powerful and deadly in combat. And you have a great body, a bit muscular but with good curves. You have great hips. I mean...you trained with people right? Got into lots of physical activity together. All sweaty and in little clothing. How could someone not want to..." Greta said, getting very...involved with her descriptions. She began to blush quite heavily.

 

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't..." Greta said.

 

"Nothing to apologize for." Uthgerd said.

 

"I can't help but agree with Greta. You're a good looking woman with a nice big ass. You're not too different from me, you know? It's funny how stupid people can be. Just because I have a slightly rounder face and softer curves I have partners lining up. But add a few more muscles and angles and suddenly people can't see the beauty." Sophia said.

 

"I...thank you ladies for your compliments." Uthgerd said. It was quite obvious she was not used to receiving such compliments, which made Greta a bit sad. She certainly deserved her fair share of compliments. And anyone she wanted to lay with. She found herself imagining Uthgerd naked with another woman and it thrilled her quite a bit. 

 

Greta struggled to compose herself. Now was not the time for such things. She had a duty to fulfill. 

 

By the time the group got together again, they had plenty to discuss.


	29. Chapter 29

Yew woke up the next morning feeling a bit hungover. He had spent much of the previous day drinking with Oden and the various tavern patrons that he was getting information from, then spent the night drinking while discussing the days events with his party. Now he regretted it a bit. 

 

Faintly, he recalled that considering how much he drank, this was getting off light. Sure many of the drinks were watered down, but even so, he drank a lot. He was pretty sure that in normal circumstances on earth he'd be useless, instead of just being a bit groggy. And even then after his usual prayer and meditation routine, he felt pretty normal. 

 

Regardless he had work to do. And that would probably require getting out of the Bee and Barb for the day.

 

He headed downstairs and ate breakfast with his companions. The women of the group seemed a bit closer. Sophia and Uthgerd didn't seem to get on each others nerves as much. 

 

"What's our plan?" Uthgerd asked.

 

"We'll be making our way to another key establishment here. The owner of which might have a bit more information for us. Yew said. 

 

"Oh? Where exactly is that?" Sophia asked. 

 

"Haelga's bunkhouse." Yew said.

 

"Who in Oblivion is Haelga?" Uthgerd asked.

 

"A woman who runs a bunkhouse. As for her character, I haven't heard much. I just know that her clientele consists of a lot of the more humble denizens of this city. It wouldn't surprise me if she knows more then her position would suggest. " Yew said.

 

Riften felt like a city in controlled fear. People clutched their purses and knapsacks closer than in Whiterun. Those who had weapons gripped their hilts tightly. Brushing against someone accidentally was due for a stern reproach and shoving, occasionally flaring into arguments or brawls.

 

"There's a strange lack of whores in this city." Sophia said.

 

"Probably due to the Temple Of Mara's influence. They try to keep the amount of slatterns in the cities where their temples are located low. It can cause one to stray from the sacred path of love." Uthgerd said.

 

"Ridiculous. I acknowledge Mara's importance but that doesn't mean I'd ever forsake Dibella." Sophia said.

 

"It's not about forsaking Dibella. it's about a balance." Uthgerd said.

 

"Then why get rid of whores?" Sophia said.

 

"They don't get rid of whores. Greta can you explain?" Uthgerd said.

 

"O-Oh...well it's about moderation and...uh compromise between brothels and the Temple." Greta said.

 

"Compromise. What exactly is that supposed to mean?" Sophia said.

 

"You can discuss whores and clerics later. We are here." Yew said. A part of him felt a little twinge of guilt at calling sex workers whores, but considering the world he was in, there was little else he could address them as without getting strange looks. It was easy enough to cope with this world when he was "in character" but every now and then "earth him" would feel very wrong about how things were. Monsters were real here, and though it was probably among the best versions of a medieval world he could fall into, it was still a medieval, alien culture. He was coping fairly well, likely to how foggy his memories of earth life was and his residual memories of Nirn Yew floating in his mind, his knowledge of Isekei tropes probably helped somewhat too. But at the end of the day part of him was homesick for a life he could barely remember, and another part was horrified at being stuck in an alien world with no chance of escape.

 

Thankfully there was so many things to take those thoughts off his mind.

 

One of which was the exceptionally striking blonde nordic woman in front of him. She was shapely and it was quickly evident to Yew why men talked about her in such reverent tones and the women with such distaste. She was gorgeous in an almost spellbinding way. 

 

"Greetings. You must be Haelga." Yew said.

 

"And you must be new in town. Something tells me your not a normal citizen." Haelga said.

 

"You would be correct. I'm a druid from High Rock, looking to make my fortune and pursue various other objectives for my order. Do you happen to know anything about another group of travelers that came here recently? Perhaps ones that were treated suspiciously well by the local criminal element?" Yew said.

 

"Why would you be looking for a group of travelers like that?" Haelga said.

 

"We are pursuing a bounty. Now don't worry. I won't turn you into the guards if your business isn't exactly on the level. Nor will I attempt to extort or strong-arm you. I'm not a crusader or a cutthroat, I merely do what is necessary to accomplish my objectives." Yew said.

 

"You're a member of this druidic order and you need to collect bounties?" Haelga asked.

 

"Yes. Do to a variety of circumstances I was given only a few resources, and I have since been parted with most of those. One needs to make a living and develop his skills in these trying times. Wouldn't you say?" Yew said.

 

"I suppose so. Still, even if I were to know about these...travelers, I would need assurances concerning my safety. I can handle myself against drunk miners and farmers, but any serious fighter could end my life in a moment. And if these people are so dangerous, giving you information might lead to my death." Haelga said.

 

"I wouldn't worry about that sweetie. My traveling companions and I can keep you safe." Yew said.

 

"Can you really? If these travelers are as well connected as you say...powerful forces in this city might want me dead. Can you really deal with an army of cutthroats and mercenaries tearing down the door?" Haelga said.

 

The look on Yew's face told Haelga all she needed to know.

 

"Sorry to say this then, sweetie. I don't know anything that can help you." Haelga said.

 

"I know that's not true." Yew said.

 

"You can know whatever you like. It won't get you that information." Haelga said.

 

Yew had encountered a dead end. The party left.

 

"Well, that was a waste of time." Uthgerd said.

 

"Not entirely. We now know that she has something. We just need to persuade her to give it up." Yew said.

 

"It's like seducing someone you know is interested. All it takes is one push and they'll give it up." Sophia said.

 

"It's not like that at all. Unless you routinely need to provide protection for your lovers." Oden said. Sophia gave him a wink.

 

"I need ideas." Yew said.

 

"M-maybe we could hire mercenaries of our own for back up." Greta said.

 

"That would be helpful in theory. But I'd rather not antagonize the powers of this city more then I need to in the first place. I also don't want to make the Bunkhouse my heroic last stand." Yew said.

 

"Make for one damn good song though." Oden said.

 

"Even still." Yew said.

 

"Just fuck her. She looks like the type who couldn't resist some pillow talk. I've lain with enough of her type of woman, I know." Sophia said.

 

"That will be taken under advisement. Any other ideas?" Yew said.

 

"Maybe we should just find the Thieves guild. Tell them where we stand. Their thieves, not murderers." Oden said.

 

"We were ambushed outside the city. Can we really trust that this thieves guild is not serving as a hit squad for the forces that control this city, or murder for their own objectives." Yew said.

 

"We haven't heard of any murders connected to the thieves guild, after an entire day talking to people about it." Oden said.

 

"Perhaps we will have to talk to them. However, I'd prefer to be in a better position then we are now." Yew said.

 

"Better position?" Greta said.

 

"We have no friends here. No solid contacts. Nowhere we can go if the city turns against us. We need to make some friends and gain influence here." Yew said.

 

 

"How do you suggest we go about that? I highly doubt we'd get anywhere with anyone if we don't buddy up to the Thieves guild." Oden said.

 

"Not true. We could instead make friends with the reformers here. Surely there are some stalwarts among the Temple of Mara. And this woman Mjoll the Lioness is said to struggle against the thieves guild." Yew said.

 

 

"So we intend to make enemies against the Thieves guild?" Oden said.

 

"Making friends is not the same as making enemies. There might be a razors edge in Riften but I intend to walk it." Yew said.

 

"I think you might be making a mistake there." Oden said.

 

"I agree with Yew...I think it should be his decision and I don't want to work for the Theives guild." Greta said.

 

"We don't have to work for them. Just have to make sure they let us go about our business." Oden said.

 

"We can do that while making friends elsewhere." Yew said.

 

"How?" Sophia asked.

 

"I've got a plan. Well, a loose plan. Some ideas. I'll discuss them with you over dinner. However, right now we need to work for our coin. For me that means alchemy. I believe their is an alchemy shop around these parts. I'll leave it up to you to decide how to spend your afternoon." Yew said. 

 

"Don't you think we should be traveling as a group." Uthgerd said.

 

"We can take care of ourselves at this point. Besides if they try and kill us in broad daylight and the guards do nothing, we're doomed regardless." Yew said. 

 

Yew headed down to the Alchemist shop of the city. Elgrim's Elixers it was called. He hoped that he could chat with the alchemist who owned it. Use their equipment. Maybe sell a few potions to them and see what their stocks were like. Maybe he could even buy a few things he had use of. 

 

It wasn't long before his trip along the canal was interrupted. Yew heard footsteps behind him. Then in front of him. Soon he was surrounded.

 

"Your gonna come with us." Said an orc who was missing half his nose. 

 

"Why would I do that?" Yew asked.

 

"Our mistress commands you. And people don't turn down her hospitality." The Orc said.

 

"And your mistress would be?" Yew asked. There was something inherently freeing about not needing to go for a weapon when in distress. He knew exactly how to activate his spells quickly and defend himself efficiently. He wasn't so confident in his fighting abilities that he thought he could go toe-toe with these 10-12 cutthroats but he felt like he could figure out a way to escape if he caused enough damage and confusion when hostilities broke out.

 

 

The orc gave Yew a glare and seemed to think this over.

 

"Lady Blackbriar." The Orc said.

 

"Ah...of Blackbrier mead?" Yew said.

 

"No one else." The Orc said.

 

"Hm. I suppose I can indulge her ladyship. Could we perhaps do this tomorrow? Today I had my heart set on some alchemy." Yew said.

 

"No. You come today." The orc said.

 

"Huh. Well, could I at least pop in for a few moments and then go find my companions. They've probably scattered themselves all over the city and I am sure your mistress would want all of us." Yew said.

 

Again the Orc had to think it over.

 

"Nah. Lady Blackbriar wanted you now. She said if you were scattered, to bring anyone of you we could find. You'll have to do." The orc said.

 

"But surely she'd prefer all of us to be there." Yew said.

 

"No. Your the one she wants the most. Pretty little Breton man in a dress." The orc said.

 

"This isn't exactly a dress. It's robes. I've unfortunately not managed to find a pretty enough dress anywhere I looked-" Yew said, but soon his sword was out and rested on the druid's throat.

 

"Now Breton. No more talk. You're a mage. Mage cast spells with words sometimes." The orc said.

 

"That you are correct. You're a smart orc. I will come along with you. Right away. No problem." Yew said. That was the first time he had a sword so close to his throat. A fear had seeped into him. He was important to this orcs mistress, sure. But he clearly prioritized his own life, and there were other group members to find. This orc wouldn't let him cast a spell. And Yew felt something too. 

 

This orc was stronger than him. Disproportionately so. Yew felt that this orc was probably of a higher level. One Piercing thorn probably wouldn't do. He might have to exhaust all his spells on this one orc and he wasn't sure that would even be enough.

 

Yew felt, for once, considerably on the back foot. And for the first time in a while, his life here felt overwhelming.

 

The orc put his sword away and he was escorted to wherever he was going. The guards didn't seem to mind and if he called out for help, the orc would strike him dead with hardly a thought.

 

Yew wasn't in control here.


	30. Chapter 30

Yew was shuffled to a large manor. It was intimidating, and basically exactly what one would expect a family of dubious morality named the Blackbriars to have as their home. He was hauled in front of a woman, maybe in her forties or fifties, eating lunch.

 

"I see you've found the druid." The woman said.

 

"How did you guess?" Yew said.

 

"The robes gave it away, as did the fact that your a Breton." The woman said.

 

"I presume your Lady Blackbriar?" Yew said.

 

"Yes. And from now on I expect you to speak more respectfully to your betters. Melruek, please show him the proper posture to take when conversing with a lady." Lady Blackbriar said. The orc preceded to shove Yew to his knees.

 

"There. That's better. Now then, to business. What are you doing in my city." Lady Blackbriar.

 

"I wasn't aware this was your city. I expect the Law Giver and Ulfric would have a word about that." Yew said.

 

"The lawgiver can barely commit to dressing herself much less to the decisions necessary to run a city. Ulfric is a soldier, and whether he wears a crown or not that's all he'll ever be. The only one who truly wields power is me. Now tell me what are you doing here." Lady Blackbriar said.

 

"Enjoying the hospitality of your city." Yew said.

 

"Careful,druid. You will want to have a good realtionship to me, and lying doesn't do much to build trust between us." Lady Blackbriar said.

 

"I wasn't lying, though I confess that I might have left out the primary reason of my being here. Which I am quite sure you know already." Yew said.

 

"Let's pretend I don't." Lady Blackbriar said.

 

"Well, I've come here to apprehend a few criminals for a bounty." Yew said.

 

"Something tells me your not primarily in it for justice's sake." Lady Blackbriar said.

 

"I know they've done wrong and I think the world is better off with them in prison or dead. But I have bigger things to worry about. However, I need funds and experience under my belt. And this was a good opportunity. Besides I have a score to settle with them." Yew said.

 

"An individual grievance. Are those allowed to members of your Order?" Lady Blackbriar asked.

 

"There are vows and virtues, beliefs and doctrine, but humans are still humans. And when someone tries to kill you and your friends, you are going to want to settle accounts." Yew said.

 

"A renegade then?" Lady Blackbriar said.

 

"Not quite. My order has an understanding that it's members have their own agendas, as long as they don't contradict the faith or undermine it's mission..." Yew said.

 

"You're given a considerable leash then?" Lady Blackbriar said.

 

"One could put it that way." Yew said.

 

"Then perhaps we could help each other out." Lady Blackbriar said.

 

"Well, I'm certainly open to listening, and it appears I'm free today." Yew said.

 

 

Riften was not a city Uthgerd felt comfortable in. It was filled with pickpockets and thieves and everyone was hostile and paranoid. Whiterun was no utopia, but most of the time she didn't have to worry about thieves. Most people in the city were well fed, even in the lower-income quarters. And most people there were intimidated by her. Here though it seemed she still had to be actively on guard all the time. These people were experienced and desperate enough to steal from a woman that could probably crack their skulls with one punch from her gauntleted fist. 

 

She had to chase off a lot of pickpockets and cutpurses who saw her as an easy mark. When she asked one she had caught why, he responded simply.

 

"You've got a big body. Usually means that your slow. And it means your used to people being scared of you, so you don't look out for the little things. Pickpockets love someone scary looking like you." Said the boy. He looked to be around 13 or 14 and he had a lean look. Uthgerd gave him some coins with a grumbled, "for bread."

 

If she kept giving coins to sickly looking pickpockets, then she would quickly run out of coins, so she didn't make a habit of it. 

 

"This city is awful." Uthgerd muttered as she leaned against a building wall. She didn't know why she split up. She had nowhere to go really, but Uthgerd liked being on her own. At least she did back home in Whiterun. in this unfamiliar place, she felt stressed and miserable.

 

"Tell me about it." Said a woman's voice. Uthgerd looked up to find a strong warrior woman. She had blue facepaint over half of her face and a sword across her back. A man was by her side. 

 

Uthgerd inhaled sharply...was this..?

 

"Are you Mjoll the Lioness?" Uthgerd asked.

 

"I see my reputation preceeds me. Who might you be?" Mjoll said.

 

"Uthgerd. They call me the Unbroken, and my companions and I have been looking for you." Uthgerd said.

 

"Well then, let's talk." Mjoll said.

 

Greta stopped in on the local Temple. Temples were always where she felt more comfortable. She understood how Yew loved wandering through a pristine wilderness or Uthgerds love of getting lost in a bustling city, but she herself preferred the cloisters of the faith. One could love humbly and simply here, helping out as much as they could. 

 

"Welcome sister. I presume by those holy robes you wear, you are a priestess of Kynereath." Said a Redguard man, wearing the garb of a humble priest of Mara.

 

"Yes. I am. From the Temple at Whiterun." Greta said.

 

"You have traveled far. Sit please, have something to drink and eat. We'll spare as much hospitality as you need." The priest said.

 

"Thank you. My name is Greta. And I am more concerned about how I can help you." Greta said. The priest smiled.

 

"My name is Maramal. I wish I could say that we wanted for nothing. Unfortunately, we need as much help as we can get as well. I fear we are failing our community. The temple, the Jarl, all of those who are supposed to serve the community. But first, you must rest and enjoy Mara's grace." Maramal said. Greta nodded, sat at a pew and prayed.

 

It was a familiar and comforting process to her and she felt the warmth she always did when she reached for the Divines light. However, for a moment near the end of her prayers, she saw a flash in her minds eye. A flash of fire and an unsettling feeling of dread. 

 

Sophia found herself in a brothel, which was familiar territory for her. She brushed her lips across the back of a Nord woman's neck. 

 

 

"People kept telling me that Skyrim was a harsh, barren land. But I've found it has many beauties." Sophia said.

 

"A bit of a played outline to my ears, madame." The nord woman said bluntly.

 

"Thought whores were supposed to be more accommodating." Sophia said.

 

"Maybe in the fragile south of Cyrodill but Nords prefer a sharper tongue on their bedwarmers." The woman said.

 

Sophia turned her around and kissed her fiercely on the lips. 

 

"Good. I prefer them that way too." Sophia said. Her hands massaging the woman's breasts.

 

"Think you...like them with large breasts too." The woman said, through her pleasure.

 

"Yes, I do like large tits. And I'm surrounded mostly by men and women with small breasts. It's lovely to have some diversity in life don't you agree?" Sophia said, taking off the nord woman's top and kissing her from her chest to her groin.

 

Her moans and shrieks were all the answer Sophia required.


End file.
